Chelsea made Leicester City pay the highest price for two defensive errors in a match that could have gone either way. The Foxes came into the fixture in good form and were good in attack. They were fluent and fluid and could have scored more than one goal had their play in the final third been better. However, Chelsea battled through the match and got themselves a lucky win.
The Blues led with a first-half Alvaro Morata goal when they hit Leicester on the counter. Luckily for them, the ball fell to Willian who brilliantly dribbled past a handful of defenders and ran about 40 yards with it before teeing up Morata. The Spaniard made a smart run down the centre channel and found himself in space and finished off the counter with a smart goal.
Leicester came out dominant in the second half and were justifiably rewarded with a goal. It was a scrappy goal for Vardy with the Chelsea defence failing to clear their lines and the Englishman as always proving to be the fox in the box.
As the match stretched into extra time, it seemed like neither side would be able to get another goal. However, a defensive error from the Foxes goalkeeper saw Pedro head the ball into an empty net to give Chelsea the lead in the first half of the extra time. Leicester battled on to get a second but to no avail as Chelsea came away with a ticket to Wembley to play in the semi-finals of the FA Cup.
Here is how the Chelsea players performed on the night.
Willy Caballero: 7
Smart and active, he played a good game as a sweeper.
Victor Moses: 5
Frustrating to no end in attack but defensively still solid.
Cesar Azpilicueta: 8
The man simply does not put a foot wrong playing match after match.
Andreas Christensen: 7
A solid outing, taken off with fatigue.
Antonio Rudiger: 7.5
He has completely displaced Cahill as the third centre-back and is doing a good job so far.
Marcos Alonso: 6.5
Good in attack but defensively always on the back foot as he was marking Mahrez.
Tiemoue Bakayoko: 2.5
Maybe football isn’t for him after all, the sooner he realizes that the better for Chelsea.
N’Golo Kante: 9
Dominated the Leicester midfield; ran for 120 minutes; intercepted everything; got an assist. Dream player to have in the midfield.
Willian: 7.5
Brilliant first half but slowed down after the knock.
Eden Hazard: 6.5
Not the Belgian’s best night but he was a threat nonetheless.
Alvaro Morata: 6
Scored a smart goal but everything else tonight points south for him.
Cesc Fabregas: 6.5
Shored up the midfield for the Blues after the Bakayoko horror show in the first half.
Pedro: 6.5
Got the winner thanks to some dreadful Leicester defending.
