LIVE BLOG

43min: Leicester’s turn to attack, but Chelsea defend well in close quarters before Pedro and Mount can run the ball out of danger.

42min: Chelsea come again, and Leicester clear another great James delivery, but only as far Kanté at the top of the box. His shot doesn’t come quickly enough however and the defense can close ranks to block it.

41min: Cross from the left towards Abraham, Soyuncu clears. But Chilwell loses the ball and Chelsea are in with CHO. He plays a ball in, but it’s behind Abraham. Mount’s there, but can’t quite get himself into a good shooting position, and an eventual left-footed effort is blocked.

39min: CHO and James combine well, and the latter delivers a perfect ball. Evans also perfect in clearing over his own bar. Mount takes the inswinging corner, Choudhury half-clears then Schmeichel completes the rest despite the ball rolling out of bounds.

36min: Leicester’s first corner, after Rüdiger blocks a cross, finds Chilwell at the far post. He has time to take it down but puts his shot over the bar with pressure arriving.

35min: Kanté makes a couple good interventions before Chelsea clear long. Abraham pressures Soyuncu and he clears with a high boot, catching Abraham. No call from the referee.

33min: Leicester cut through Chelsea’s right side, as Hudson-Odoi loses Chilwell. His pass inwards to Barnes at the top fo the box is perfect, but his shot is not and it’s well over the bar.

32min: Pedro tries a cheeky chip over Schmeichel, an inch off his line, but the big man easily steps back and tips the ball over for a corner. Mount takes, but it’s easily cleared and Leicester can counter. James covers well to clear for a throw.

30min: Hudson-Odoi bounds through the center, playing wide left to Pedro, who’s absolutely hacked down by Evans, 20 yards out. Mount’s direct free kick is blocked by a jumping wall.

28min: Tielemans is played in behind Chelsea’s backline, but fortunately his cutback only finds Kanté, covering well. Rüdiger then gives the ball away with a chance to counter.

27min: Chelsea’s turn to press and Kanté wins the ball high up, playing in Mount, but he can’t quite weave through three players in the center.

25min: Chelsea lose the ball as Leicester press, and Vardy’s in but Cabellero makes a big save by stacking his legs, hockey goalie style. Chelsea can’t quite settle down at the moment however, giving the ball away again in midfield after CHO and Abraham get in each other’s way. Good cover from Kanté prevents any further danger.

24min: Jorginho’s caught on the ball and suddenly Leicester are in. Christensen covers Vardy well, but Leicester set up shop in the final third. Rüdiger makes two big blocks before James and then Pedro are called for fouls on either flank. Abraham clears the first free kick, while the second free kick is missed by everyone, much to the relief of the Chelsea defense.

22min: Chelsea come again, but can’t quite create a shooting chance despite promising passages fo play.

20min: Pedro plays in Abraham, who’s behind the line but Soyuncu recovers. Abraham tries to cut inside the defender, but goes to ground after the cutback, under apparent contact by the defender. No call from Lee Mason and VAR agrees after a brief check.

18min: Great bit of play up the right channel eventually leads to Azpi cutting a ball back towards Abraham in acres of space, but it’s just a bit behind him and he can’t quite reach back for it with his long legs. Cheslea recycle possession and James whips one in from the right, which just eludes a Chelsea head. More missed chances!

16min: Maddison this time called for a foul on James, sliding in from behind. No yellow in the latest bit of hilarious refereeing.

14min: Hudson-Odoi rides a couple challenges, then has a slightly poor touch that allows Maddison to nip in ahead of him and fall down, getting the call from the referee.

11min: Hudson-Odoi weaves some magic from the right, cutting inside and splitting three before finding Mount for a fantastic chance, which he somehow fires over the bar. He’s saved further embarrassment by an offside flag, but replays show he might have been just onside.

10min: Rüdiger and Vardy clash heads on an aerial 50-50. Cursory inspections later, they’re both cleared to play. What concussion protocol?

8min: Hudson-Odoi hacked down by Choudhury. The free kick’s played wide to James, who puts in a great cross. Evans clears for a corner, which is taken short to Hudson-Odoi. His great cross is headed clear for another corner, on the other side. This one’s played short to Pedro. His cross is not good however, and is over everyone before going out for a goal kick.

5min: The teams trade crap throw-in before a good play from Mount gets Chelsea moving forward. Switch to the left finds Pedro in acres of space and he gallops forward, alongside Azpi who gets the pass. His left-footed low ball across the top of the box is perfect for the arriving Hudson-Odoi, but he completely whiffs on his shot. Chance, that.

3min: An early foray on the right is snuffed out by Rüdiger, while at the other end, Pedro runs into Ricardo, as the two teams feels each other out.

KICK-OFF: Chelsea in the third kit all-blacks with orange socks, Leicester in their home blues with white shorts and blue socks. And we’re off.

Transfer season’s over for a little while, so let’s get back to the football.

And what a way to start it off, with a veritable top-four six-pointer! Both teams want to and need to win, so this could get super tense or super wide open and entertaining. Neither team are in exactly great form at the moment either.

A few bold choices from Lampard today, including starts for Pedro, Caballero (Kepa dropped), and Abraham (let’s hope he’s actually fit). Dropping Kepa will certainly make for some headlines...

Here we go!

Leicester City starting lineup (4-2-3-1):

Schmeichel | Chilwell, Söyüncü, Evans, Ricardo | Tielemans, Choudhury | Barnes, Pérez, Maddison | Vardy

Substitutes from: Ward, Justin, Fuchs, Praet, Gray, Albrighton, Iheanacho

Chelsea starting lineup (4-2-3-1):

Caballero | Azpilicueta (c), Rüdiger, Christensen, James | Jorginho, Kanté | Hudson-Odoi, Mount, Pedro | Abraham

Substitutes from: Arrizabalaga, Tomori, Alonso, Kovačić, Barkley, Willian, Batshuayi

Date / Time: Saturday, February 1, 2020, 12.30 GMT; 7.30am EST; 6pm IST

Venue: King Power Stadium, Leicester

Referee: Lee Mason

On TV: BT Sport 1 (UK); NBCSN, Universo (USA); Star Sports Select HD1 (India); SuperSport 3, Canal+ Sport 2 (NGA); elsewhere

Streaming: BT Sport Live (UK); NBC Sports Live, Universo Now (USA); Hotstar VIP (India); DStv Now (NGA)

Be excellent to each other, and party on, dudes!

Leicester City vs. Chelsea, Premier League: Scoreless, but plenty of chances at either end

LIVE BLOG