Chelsea takes on a side they haven’t met in a long time in a competitive match in the sixth round of the FA Cup, Leicester
The Chelsea players have seemingly been reborn. The exit of Andre Villas Boas following a 1-0 loss to West Brom and the return of the old guard has done Chelsea wonders. Under Roberto Di Matteo, they have beaten Birmingham in the FA Cup and beaten Stoke City 1-0 in the league. The biggest victory so far though has come against Napoli.
3-1 down from the first leg and seemingly heading out, Chelsea capitalized on Napoli’s main weakness- namely their inability to defend crosses- to fire the team to a 2-0 lead. The scorers on the day were two people who weren’t Villas Boas’ favourites- John Terry and Didier Drogba.
A Gokhan Inler strike which should have seen Chelsea go out did nothing to dampen spirits as the Blues brought the aggregate score level with fifteen minutes to go. A very unlikely source, Branislav Ivanovic scored in extra time to give Chelsea an aggregate win by the thinnest of margins, 5-4. Chelsea’s defence had a few problems dealing with Napoli’s superb front trio- however, Chelsea played with a swagger that was missing in recent weeks.
Leicester’s current form hasn’t been the most impressive. They have lost two of their previous three matches. They lost to Bristol City 3-2 and followed it up with a loss against Reading, 3-1. Their most recent match came against Birmingham- a game in which they finally recorded a victory, 3-1.
These two sides last met in the Premier League in 2004, when Chelsea ran out 0-4 winners. Chelsea won the fixture prior to that as well, 2-1. The last competitive meeting between these two sides came in England’s other cup competition, the Carling Cup in 2007. The game was a highly entertaining and high scoring affair with Chelsea running out 4-3 winners.
This time, with the swagger with which Chelsea is currently playing, expect Leicester to be put to the sword with the minimum of fuss.
Prediction: Chelsea 3-0 Leicester
3-1 down from the first leg and seemingly heading out, Chelsea capitalized on Napoli’s main weakness- namely their inability to defend crosses- to fire the team to a 2-0 lead. The scorers on the day were two people who weren’t Villas Boas’ favourites- John Terry and Didier Drogba.
A Gokhan Inler strike which should have seen Chelsea go out did nothing to dampen spirits as the Blues brought the aggregate score level with fifteen minutes to go. A very unlikely source, Branislav Ivanovic scored in extra time to give Chelsea an aggregate win by the thinnest of margins, 5-4. Chelsea’s defence had a few problems dealing with Napoli’s superb front trio- however, Chelsea played with a swagger that was missing in recent weeks.
Leicester’s current form hasn’t been the most impressive. They have lost two of their previous three matches. They lost to Bristol City 3-2 and followed it up with a loss against Reading, 3-1. Their most recent match came against Birmingham- a game in which they finally recorded a victory, 3-1.
These two sides last met in the Premier League in 2004, when Chelsea ran out 0-4 winners. Chelsea won the fixture prior to that as well, 2-1. The last competitive meeting between these two sides came in England’s other cup competition, the Carling Cup in 2007. The game was a highly entertaining and high scoring affair with Chelsea running out 4-3 winners.
This time, with the swagger with which Chelsea is currently playing, expect Leicester to be put to the sword with the minimum of fuss.
Prediction: Chelsea 3-0 Leicester
