Marc Cucurella's barber leaks Chelsea team news for Brighton game hours before Liam Rosenior confirmation

Per the Daily Mail, Chelsea fans were alerted to the absence of star man Cole Palmer and striker Joao Pedro long before the official team-sheets were handed in at the Amex Stadium. The leak originated from the X account @Rileyeagles_, alleged to belong to the personal barber of Spanish defender Cucurella, who posted: "Palmer and Joao Pedro both injured tonight. There's your exclusive."

The post was shared alongside a photo of the back of a head during a fresh trim, purportedly Cucurella's, although the defender's face was not visible. The information proved to be correct as Palmer sat out the contest with a hamstring issue, while Pedro failed to recover from an injury that also kept him out of Chelsea's defeat to Manchester United. Following the incident, the @Rileyeagles_ account and the original tweet have both been deleted.

This latest security breach comes after Rosenior previously insisted that the club had addressed their issues with internal leaks. Earlier this season, the Blues were left embarrassed when their entire starting XI was published before both legs of their Champions League tie with Paris Saint-Germain. However, Rosenior had stated that the mystery had been solved and the source was identified as external.

“We know (who it is),” Rosenior told reporters at the time. “It's not come from any place of malicious intent to me or to the team. We know where it's come from and we've dealt with the situation.”

The distraction of the leak was followed by a disastrous performance on the pitch. Chelsea were dismantled 3-0 by the Seagulls, failing to register a single shot on target throughout the clash. The lack of fight from the visitors saw them slump to a fifth consecutive Premier League defeat without finding the back of the net, marking their worst run since 1912.

Rosenior did not hold back in his post-match assessment, clearly fuming at the lack of professionalism shown by his side. “It was unacceptable in every aspect of the game, unacceptable in our attitude,” he told Sky Sports. The defeat sees Chelsea drop to seventh in the Premier League table, further drifting away from the Champions League qualification spots as their season threatens to end in total obscurity.

The internal issues are compounding a miserable run of form that has seen Chelsea lose seven of their last eight games across all competitions. With only four matches remaining in the league, the focus now shifts to the FA Cup semi-final against Leeds. That fixture has become a must-win for Rosenior, who warned that "drastic changes" are required to fix the culture at the club.