5 reasons why Chelsea could win against Leicester City tonight | Premier League 2020-21
Chelsea will try to put their FA Cup heartbreak behind them and try to secure a top 4 spot as they host Leicester City today.
Chelsea and Leicester City will take on each other in a second high-stakes match in the span of four days. The race for Champions League qualification has intensified in recent weeks with Liverpool breathing down the necks of both Chelsea and Leicester City.
Leicester City are third in the Premier League table with 66 points while Chelsea are close behind with 64. Liverpool have 63 points and tonight's result will have huge ramifications for all three clubs.
Leicester City beat Chelsea in the FA Cup final on Saturday. Despite all the improvement that the Blues have shown under Thomas Tuchel, they run the risk of letting slip the opportunity to qualify for the Champions League. If Chelsea lose or draw, then Liverpool can move to fourth place with a win against Burnley on Wednesday.
But Chelsea are one of the strongest units in the English top-flight and will be seeking retribution when they host the Foxes today. Without further ado, let's take a look at five reasons why Chelsea could beat Leicester City today.
#5 Leicester City's focus could be off after big FA Cup win
Leicester City won their first major trophy since winning the Premier League in the 2015-16 season this past Saturday. The scenes that unfolded at Wembley after the final whistle show how much it meant to the Foxes. They came into the match second-favourites and had to work their guts out to keep the Blues at bay.
They will be tasked with doing the same yet again with a Champions League spot at stake. However, Leicester City might find the game coming too soon for them after their FA Cup triumph. Following the celebrations on Saturday and Sunday, they would have had just a little more than a day to prepare for the trip to West London.
Chelsea, on the other hand, will be well-rested and baying for blood. A win here won't taste as sweet as winning the FA Cup but it will come pretty close given what's at stake.
#4 Chelsea's squad depth
Chelsea have incredible squad depth. They have a batch of versatile players as well and this affords Thomas Tuchel the opportunity to be flexible with his starting XI. Mateo Kovacic could be available again after missing 10 matches due to a hamstring problem which could be a major boost for Chelsea.
The likes of Christian Pulisic and Kai Havertz have been in good form but did not start the FA Cup final. The same goes for the likes of Ben Chilwell, Edouard Mendy and Kurt Zouma. As is evident, Chelsea can put out a new look starting XI who can be just as effective as the players who started the game on Saturday.
This means that despite having to play their second game in four days, Chelsea will be well-rested and fatigue won't really be a factor in their performance today.