By Ashton Cox
Chelsea finally broke down the Foxes resistance to win 1-0 at Stamford Bridge.
Marc Cucurella’s strike on the hour mark was enough for the three points as the Blues struggled to convert chances once more.
Cole Palmer’s 100% penalty conversion rate evaporated as he missed a first-half spot-kick.
The English attacker was eventually substituted as his poor run of form – 7 games without a goal involvement – continued.
First Half
The opening 10 minutes saw a flurry of chances, with Palmer having multiple shots and a potential penalty shout waved away, whilst Leicester’s Bilal El Khannous hit the target from the edge of the box.
Jadon Sancho won the Blues a penalty 19 minutes in, after Victor Kristiansen tripped him as the winger cut back onto his left side.
However, Palmer’s spot-kick failed to reach the bottom corner and was saved by Mads Hermansen.
The visitors came agonisingly close to leading in the 26th minute, when James Justin’s cross forced an error from Tosin Adarabioyo’s header which then rattled the crossbar with Robert Sanchez beaten.
Chelsea’s best move ’till that point came in added time, as Pedro Neto ran in behind Leicester’s defence and cut the ball back for Christopher Nkunku, whose shot was pushed over the bar.
For the Blues’ 69% possession and 10 shots in the first 45, Leicester deserved to remain scoreless thanks to tireless work led by Wout Faes and Conor Coady, with Patson Daka also tracking back.
Second Half
Chelsea finally broke the deadlock on the hour mark as Cucurella lingered outside the box with no one closing him down, allowing the Spaniard to strike low into the far corner.
The hosts then squandered a great opportunity to double their lead as Harry Winks was dispossessed on the halfway line which led to a Blues counter-attack.
Palmer chose to take the chance on himself but his shot was blocked, before Leicester failed to clear as the ball fell to Sancho, whose shot was saved by the foot of Hermansen.
The Foxes prepared to throw the kitchen sink at Chelsea through a triple subsitution with Stephy Mavididi, Bobby Decordova-Reid and Ricardo Pereira all introduced – although none could change Leicester’s fortunes
Enzo Fernandez came close to sealing the game with what turned out to be the last kick as he broke through on goal but his shot was denied once again by the Danish goalkeeper, who could be proud of his efforts.