Leicester beat Chelsea 1-0 to lift historic maiden FA Cup title

Youri Tielemans' superb strike from 25-yards separated the two teams; Kasper Schmiechel made some superb saves to hold on to the victory

Leicester City beat Chelsea 1-0 to lift the FA Cup title; Credit: Twitter/@LCFC
By Sreejith C R | May 16, 2021 | 2 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

Leicester City beat Chelsea 1-0 at Wembley on Saturday to lift their first FA Cup title. Youri Tielemans 63rd minute strike separated the two sides. Leicester captain and goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel made some superb saves as the Foxes held on to the slender lead. The first half was a cagey affair with both teams not able to break through each other’s defence.

The 24-year old Tielemans scored one of the best goals in an FA Cup final to lift the title for Leicester City. The Belgian midfielder’s right-footed strike from 25 yards went past Kepa Arrizabalaga to help them take the lead.

Chelsea started the game with a bit more intent but failed to create any clear-cut chances. The Leicester defense had a very good match as they did not let the Chelsea attackers through.  Chelsea started pushing harder for the equalizer. They had their best chances of the game in the later stages of the game. Substitute Ben Chilwell N’Golo Kante’s cross, but Schmiechel’s outstretched right hand pushed the ball away.

Four minutes before time, Schmeichel was in action. Mason Mount’s volley was kept out by a superb dive from Schmeichel. The Denmark international was up to the task in the final.

Schmeichel’s heroics and late drama in FA Cup

There was late drama as Caglar Soyuncu’s attempted clearance of Chilwell’s low cross deflected of Wes Morgan to go inside the Leicester goal. The goal was ruled out after VAR as the former Leicester man Chilwell was found to be offside.

Tielemans was the Man Of the Match. Apart from the sensational goal he scored, the Belgian was superb in midfield. He was consistently picking up the forward runs of Jamie Vardy. Tielemans also did an excellent job to keep the Chelsea midfield quiet, along with Wilfred Ndidi.

It was also a landmark day as 21,000 spectators watched the match at Wembley. The 2020 final between Chelsea and Arsenal was held behind closed doors due to COVID-19.

It was Leicester’s first FA Cup triumph in their 137-year history. The last time Foxes played in the final was in 1969, they had lost in all of their previous finals. Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers is having a very good season. The Foxes are third in the Premier League with two games to go.

Thomas Tuchel looked a frustrated figure on the sidelines after losing his first of two finals this season. The blues will take on Real Madrid in the Champions League final on May 29. Chelsea will have to set aside the disappointment and concentrate on their next game against Leicester in the midweek Premier League fixture.





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