Chelsea got their revenge against Leicester City as they defeated them to move above the Foxes in the race for the Champions League.
Yes, the cup final was an incredible day and will live long in the memory of everyone who witnessed it, but this was an embarrassing performance and one that may have cost the Foxes Champions League football in 2021/22.
Understandably they all looked hungover and Chelsea took advantage and ran the Foxes ragged. 11 shots compared to Leicester’s one in the first half and two disallowed goals, one for offside and the other for handball, and a clear penalty not given was the story of the first half.
Chelsea were keen to avenge their final defeat and they made up for their missed chances with an early goal in the second period. A corner was inadvertently flicked on by Vardy at the near post and it fell straight to Antonio Rudiger who bundled it home.
Shortly after Timo Werner was slightly tripped by Fofana, which VAR judged to be in the area and Jorginho made no mistake from the spot to double his sides lead.
The game was seemingly heading for a dull finish, but a lapse in concentration from Kovacic gave Ndidi a sniff who played in Iheanacho who obviously finished calmly to give the FA Cup holders some hope.
Ayoze Perez should have put his side level with a glorious chance from 12 yards out but he blazed over.
After that the Foxes kind of lost the plot as scuffles and handbags were dished out a couple of times. It would have been nice if they showed that kind of energy at the start.
Here are the ratings:
Kasper Schmeichel- 6
Couldn’t do anything with either goal and made some good saves early on.
Timothy Castagne- 4
He’s so wasted in a back three, it’s so frustrating when Rodgers persists with a back three and plays him back there. However, he did lose Rudiger for the opener.
Wesley Fofana- 5
Was good in the first half, commanding as ever. BUT penalty or not it’s such a moronic challenge to make when Werner is running to corner flag; he’s making a habit of that.
Caglar Soyuncu- 5
Literally couldn’t stay on his feet due to the slippy surface. He wasn’t helped by Thomas on that left-hand side, as the youngster kept leaving the big Turk isolated against Pulisic and co.
Marc Albrighton- 4
Pretty useless today, all the play was coming on the opposite side, and when he did get the ball he lumped it long to no one.
Wilfred Ndidi- 6
Solid as ever and covered the defenders well. Good tackle and pass for the goal.
Youri Tielemans- 5
Youri I love you but stop hitting the first man PLEASE! He was poor today, tried to assert himself but it just never happened for him.
Luke Thomas- 4
Really bad, lost his footing a lot through no fault of his own, but he was always caught out of position and when he received the ball, he -like everyone else- lost it before he blinked an eye.
Ayoze Perez- 4
Did nothing all game and fluffed his lines when called upon. His performance was identical to Maddison, so I don’t know why he lasted till the end. But he has to score that chance at the end, it looked too easy.
James Maddison- 3
He’s really been a mystery these past couple of weeks. Dropped at West Ham, teared it up against West Brom, and has either been benched or substituted for being bad or not match fit due to his injury. Obviously, his injury hasn’t helped his form because he is being monitored closely, but my god he was anonymous today. Yes, he had to track back a lot but he’s got to do more when he does get on the ball rather than lose it immediately
Jamie Vardy- 3
Obviously, everyone loves him, but when is he going to get dropped? It’s like playing with ten men. His run of form is almost embarrassing. If you are going to play with one striker, it shouldn’t be him.
Substitutes:
Kelechi Iheanacho- 7
I’m still trying to work out why he wasn’t starting?! In form, full of confidence, important match and he’s benched. He showed his manager why he made a mistake by giving his side a chance with a well taken goal. He just looks so much more alive than Vardy.
Ricardo- 5
Didn’t do a lot, but then came alive in the last five minutes with a good cross for Perez and then started a mass brawl.