We knew before that this was going to be a tough match against a strong side, asserts Thomas Tuchel

Chelsea hosted Brighton in a thrilling encounter on Wednesday night as they looked to maintain their title charge by moving closer to league leaders Manchester City. Romelu Lukaku opened the scoring for the hosts as he rose highest during a corner kick to nod Chelsea into the lead in the 28th minute. Brighton created numerous chances after Chelsea's goal but were unable to convert any of their chances in the first and the second half. Danny Welbeck came on as a substitute for the Seagulls in the closing minutes of the match and made his mark on the match as he nodded in the ball into goal from a Marc Cucurella cross.

The draw with Brighton leaves Chelsea eight points behind Pep Guardiola's side in second place after the reigning Premier League champions secured a 1-0 victory over Brentford on Wednesday. Chelsea boss Tuchel credited Brighton for being resilient but also attributed his side’s sluggish showing due to their mounting injuries.

"We knew before that this was going to be a tough match against a strong side. They come well prepared. It's always like this. I have not seen one team play a nice match against them, so it was clear we would struggle. We simply have way too many players of whom we don't know what we can demand. They come from long injuries, they come from Covid. I simply don't know what they are capable of doing,” Tuchel told Sky Sports.

“We started very, very well, until the injury for Reece James, which was a huge blow. Then we lose Andreas Christensen, who was until then again one of the top players on the pitch. At some point, it's too much," he added.