There was plenty of frustration amongst Chelsea fans as they saw their side exit the FA Cup following a 2-1 defeat to Brighton.
There were very few individual displays that deserved praise. Only Moises Caicedo impressed in our player ratings against his former side.
After being handed an early lead curtesy of a Bart Verbruggen own goal, the Blues struggled to create any chances for the rest of the game. It felt as if they were missing Nicolas Jackson despite his dry spell in front of goal.
Craig Burley slams ‘waste of money’ Christopher Nkunku after Chelsea’s loss to Brighton
In his absence, Christopher Nkunku led the line in what was a rare start for him. However, there was reason to be optimistic given his impressive goalscoring record in cup competitions.
| Christopher Nkunku cup stats 24/25 | Games | Goals |
| Conference League | 5 | 5 |
| EFL Cup | 2 | 3 |
| FA Cup | 2 | 1 |
However, the Frenchman endured a rough outing, highlighted by the fact he had just one touch in Brighton’s penalty area.
This came when he was played clean through on goal but opted to try and pass rather than take on the shot. Steve Sidwell believes a lack of gametime is behind Nkunku not taking that chance.
Former Chelsea star and FA Cup winner Craig Burley was very critical of the Frenchman after the game. He told ESPN he has expected so much more from the attacker after the money the club spent on him.
He said: “Nkunku up front, I mean what a total waste of money he’s been. And on top of that they are looking a bit fragile at the back.”
Enzo Maresca has faith in Christopher Nkunku
Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca saw Joao Felix leave the club on deadline day of the January transfer window,
While his options are now more limited, the boss has already stated he has faith that Nkunku can step up in the second half of the season.
He said in his last pre-match press conference: “For sure, for sure… Against West Ham he played more or less half an hour. Hopefully from now on he can get more minutes and help us.”
Those opportunities cannot come up front though, meaning they are going to have to rely on Jackson rediscovering his goalscoring touch before they fall away from competing for the Champions League places.
