Chelsea vs Leicester City Match Overview
Chelsea overcame 10-man Leicester City 4-2 in the FA Cup quarter-finals on Sunday in a thrilling encounter. Carney Chukwuemeka and Noni Madueke struck apiece in stoppage-time to seal the game for the Blues after Leicester had wiped out their two-goal lead in the second half. The match also saw Raheem Sterling miss a penalty whereas Callum Doyle was sent off as the sides played out an absolute classic.
Marc Cucurella opened the scoring for the hosts in the 13th minute before Cole Palmer doubled their advantage in the added minutes of the opening stanza. An own goal from Axel Disasi minutes into the restart, halved their lead as Stephy Mavididi then equalized for the Foxes right after the hour mark.
Leicester were reduced to 10-men midway through the second half when Doyle was sent off for hacking down Nicolas Jackson inside the box when the Chelsea striker had clear sight of goal. The Blues were even awarded a penalty initially, but that was chalked off following a VAR review.
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As the match went on, extra-time beckoned with neither unable to find the winner, that’s until the 92nd minute when Chukwuemeka put Chelsea in front following a sublime one-two with Palmer. If there were any doubts of the result, they were put to bed another six minutes later when Madueke popped up with a fourth, unleashing a 25-yard stunner to seal their passage into the semi-finals.
Chelsea will learn their semi-final opponents after Manchester United’s clash with Liverpool later in the evening.
Chelsea vs Leicester City Player Ratings
Chelsea
Robert Sanchez (GK) – 6/10: The Chelsea custodian was lacking his usual composure and his distribution wasn’t the best too
Malo Gusto (RB) – 7.5/10: He made five tackles and won seven ground duels, as his physicality was on full display today, while Gusto also bagged the assist for Madueke’s stoppage-time goal
Axel Disasi (CB) – 4.5/10: A forgetful display from the Frenchman, who scored a terrible own goal that brought Leicester City level and looked unsettled whenever the visitors got forward
Trevoh Chalobah (CB) – 6.5/10: He read the game well but positioning could’ve been better
Marc Cucurella (LB) – 8/10: An imperious display from the Spaniard, who made a telling impact at both ends of the pitch; he even opened the floodgates on the evening with a 13th-minute goal for the Blues
Moises Caicedo (DM) – 6.5/10: The former Brighton star fought hard for the ball and always looked to impede Leicester’s movements with his crucial interventions. He also made four key passes in the game
Conor Gallagher (DM) – 6/10: Gallagher struggled to get forward much and seemed to run out of ideas on the ball too
Cole Palmer (RW) – 8.5/10: His stellar season continued with a goal and an assist, while he also made four crosses in the game
Mykhaylo Mudryk (AW) – 6.5/10: The Ukrainian was full of flair and panache but not enough end-product
Raheem Sterling (LW) – 4/10: What a shockingly bad display from Sterling, whose penalty effort was poor, missed a one-on-one chance, and then blasted a free-kick into row Z
Nicolas Jackson (ST) – 7/10: The striker was lacking in accuracy as all three of his shots on the evening were off target, but nonetheless, a huge menace to Leicester with his ball-winning capabilities and immaculate passing range
Leicester City
Jakub Stolarczyk (GK) – 6.5/10: Despite conceding four times, the Leicester custodian had his moments, such as saving Sterling’s penalty and parrying away a fearsome-looking shot by Mudryk. If only he had a better defense in front of him, Stolarczyk might not have ended up on the losing side of the game today
Hamza Choudhury (RB) – 5/10: Chelsea’s marauding forwards gave him a hard time, as Choudhury starved for possession
Wout Faes (CB) – 6.5/10: The Belgian was left exposed many a times during Chelsea’s attacking moments, but Faes read the game well and made seven clearances
Jannik Vestergaard (CB) – 6.5/10: Jackson gave him a hard time, beating him for Chelsea’s first goal and then again in the second half. However, it wasn’t all doom and gloom for Vestergaard, who made vital contributions in defense, registering four clearances, two interceptions and two blocks
Callum Doyle (LB) – 6/10: His night ended prematurely as Doyle was sent off for hacking down Jackson when he was clean through on goal in the 73rd minute. Until then, he was alright, not afraid of confronting opposition players while also passing accurately
Wilfred Ndidi (LM) – 5/10: Not the best night for the talented Nigerian who is capable of so much
Harry Winks (CM) – 6.5/10: Winks was chasing shadows for much of the game as he struggled to exert his influence in the proceedings
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (LM) – 6/10: His precocious dribbling skill helped get the ball forward a couple of times and fought hard to regain it when not in possession
Abdul Fatawu Issahaku (RW) – 5/10: Issahaku conceded the penalty to Chelsea in the first half and didn’t recover from it thereafter as he continued to look shaky. He was put out of his misery at half-time
Patson Daka (ST) – 7/10: He wasn’t given much space in front of goal to work into but the Zambian nonetheless was proactive and gave Chelsea defense plenty to think of
Stephy Mavididi (LW) – 8/10: His movements caused Chelsea all sorts of problems, while he also bagged a goal in the 62nd minute to equalize for the Foxes
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