Winless in 2018 and three goalless draws on the bounce, it’s safe to say Chelsea’s recent performances have not been particularly exciting to watch. Saturday’s fixture was no exception, with the Blues being held by Leicester at Stamford Bridge. Despite playing with a man advantage for over 20 minutes, Antonio Conte’s side were unable to find a goal to win the goal. In a hugely disappointing afternoon, here’s who impressed against Leicester on Saturday:
3. N’Golo Kante
Reunited against his former club, Kante produced the type of performance we’ve come to expect of him. Tireless running, tackles, interceptions, the lot. Kante was his usual self, but did struggle at times against Leicester’s midfield pairing of Matty James and Wilfried N’Didi. Overall, he was good and coped well defensively. Going forward, he managed to impress too. He stung the fingertips of Kasper Schmeichel with a good shot, hoping to add to his tally this season, and score in both games against his former employers this season.
2. Andreas Christesen
Originally rested for this game, Christensen was called into action just after the half-hour mark after an injury to Gary Cahill. Despite David Luiz being on the bench, Antonio Conte opted for the Dane to replace his captain. After coming on, the centre-back seemed calm and composed. He coped with the threat of Jamie Vardy well, and managed to quiet the Englishman down after an impressive opening 30 minutes. Arguably now of the first names on the Chelsea team sheet.
1. Thibaut Courtois
The Belgian was Chelsea’s saviour on Saturday. Thanks to his mighty six foot six frame, he managed to stretch across and get a hand to N’Didi’s goal-bound header, which a smaller keeper might’ve struggled to reach. Goalless draws might be an annoyance to some, but it means Courtois has kept another clean sheet, and this is his 12th in the Premier League this season – a stat only matched by Manchester United’s David De Gea. Luckily for the Blues, Courtois was in top form to keep Chelsea in the game during the first half.