Referee Takes Charge of Brighton for the First Time Since Controversial Arsenal Incident

The Premier League has confirmed the match officials for Brighton & Hove Albion’s upcoming fixture against Chelsea, marking the second time in six days that Enzo Maresca’s side will visit the Amex Stadium.

The Seagulls put in an impressive performance last Saturday night, coming from behind to secure a 2-1 victory over the Blues and advance to the fifth round of the FA Cup.

This Friday at 8pm, Brighton will aim to replicate that success as they look to return to winning ways in the Premier League.

Fabian Hürzeler’s team currently sit 10th in the table, still recovering from a heavy 7-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest. Meanwhile, Chelsea are fourth and pushing for a Champions League spot.

"I'm sure it will be a different challenge next week, and we have to prepare for that," said Brighton boss Hürzeler after the FA Cup win. "We need to have the same mindset as today, and then I'm confident we can prove ourselves again. We can beat any team in this league."

Premier League Confirms Match Officials

Chris Kavanagh has been appointed as the referee for Friday’s match at the Amex Stadium. This will be the first time the 39-year-old has officiated a Brighton match since their 1-1 draw with Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium last August.

Kavanagh made headlines during that fixture after controversially issuing Arsenal’s Declan Rice a second yellow card following an altercation with Brighton’s Joël Veltman. Rice was deemed to have delayed play by kicking the ball away, preventing Veltman from taking a quick free kick. Nine minutes later, Brighton’s João Pedro cancelled out Kai Havertz’s opener to earn a draw.

At the time, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta expressed his frustration:

"I was amazed," said Arteta. "Amazed, amazed, amazed by how inconsistent decisions can be. In the first half, there were two similar incidents, and nothing happened."

Kavanagh has officiated 23 matches across all competitions so far this season, issuing 128 yellow cards and four red cards.

Match Officials:

• Referee: Chris Kavanagh

• Assistant Referees: Lee Betts, Mark Scholes

• Fourth Official: Stuart Attwell

• VAR: Michael Oliver

• Assistant VAR: Ian Hussin

VAR Returns for Premier League Clash

Video Assistant Referee (VAR) was not in use for Brighton’s FA Cup victory over Chelsea but will return for Friday’s Premier League encounter.

Maresca voiced his frustration over the absence of VAR in the FA Cup tie, particularly regarding a handball incident in the build-up to Kaoru Mitoma’s winner. The Chelsea manager believed Brighton’s Tariq Lamptey had handled the ball in the lead-up to the goal.

"I think the handball is quite clear. Over the past few days, we have seen several incidents in different matches. Without VAR, things become complicated," Maresca stated.

Brighton manager Hürzeler, however, had no issues with the goal standing.

"First of all, I was certain the goal would count because there was no VAR, so we could celebrate it in a different way," he said.

Despite Chelsea’s complaints, the goal would have stood even if VAR had been in operation. Lamptey’s handball was deemed accidental, and it was Mitoma, not Lamptey, who ultimately put the ball into the net.