Marc Cucurella’s barber leaked Chelsea team news hours before Brighton kick-off

Marc Cucurella’s barber leaked Chelsea team news hours before Brighton kick-off

Chelsea were hit by an unusual off-field controversy ahead of their heavy defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion after team news was leaked online via Marc Cucurella’s barber.

An image posted on social media shortly before kick-off appeared to reveal that Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro would miss the match through injury.

The post, which was later deleted along with the account, included the caption claiming the information as an “exclusive”.

Neither player was named in the matchday squad, confirming the accuracy of the leak and raising fresh concerns within the club over internal information being shared externally.

The incident came ahead of a difficult night on the pitch, with Chelsea suffering a 3-0 defeat that extended their poor run of form.

The result marked their fifth consecutive league game without a win, during which they have also failed to score, representing their worst run in over a century.

Head coach Liam Rosenior was visibly frustrated after the match and did not hold back in his assessment of the performance.

“It was unacceptable in every aspect of the game,” Rosenior said, criticising both the attitude and execution of his players.

“Unacceptable in attitude… that performance tonight was indefensible,” he added, highlighting a lack of intensity and basic errors that contributed to the defeat.