Winners and losers of Chelsea 0-0 Leicester

Chelsea failed to score for the third game running as they were held by ten-man Leicester City 0-0 at Stamford Bridge.

Leicester had the better opportunities of the two sides and were unfortunate not to take all three points despite Ben Chilwell being sent off in the second-half.

The draw is Chelsea’s fourth in a row in all competitions, three of which have been goalless, and could see them drop down a place to fourth should Liverpool beat Manchester City on Sunday.

Meanwhile the Foxes have consolidated their hold on ninth place in the league and continue their impressive run under Claude Puel.

With all that said, here are four winners and four losers from the game at Stamford Bridge.

Winners
Riyad Mahrez
With rumours surrounding his future, Riyad Mahrez did his stock no harm with an impressive display against Chelsea.

Riyad Mahrez completed seven of his nine take-on attempts against Chelsea, more than any other Leicester player
Possibly an audition for a move away, Mahrez was a constant thorn in Chelsea’s left-hand side.

Mahrez has been linked with a move to Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea in the January transfer window and the Algerian proved a tough test for Marcos Alonso and Antonio Rudiger.

The 26-year-old’s understanding with Jamie Vardy was Leicester’s best opportunity for goals and their link-up play had the Chelsea defence beat on numerous occasions.

Jamie Vardy
When Gary Cahill was taken off injured, there might have been some small part in him that was grateful he did not have to deal with Jamie Vardy.

The Leicester striker was in menacing form, pressing Chelsea’s back line at every opportunity and when Ben Chilwell was sent off, the Englishman could be found covering deep in defence.

Unfortunately for Vardy, his game did not get the goal it undoubtedly deserved, but the striker’s performances under Claude Puel have boosted his chances of an appearance at the World Cup in Russia.

Claude Puel
Lamented for his defensive tactics while manager of Southampton, Claude Puel has transformed this Leicester City side and had Chelsea for the taking.

12 – Leicester have had 12 shots against Chelsea so far – the most of any visiting team in the first half of a @premierleague match at Stamford Bridge (since 2003-04). Brash. #CHELEI

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) January 13, 2018

While some may have set up to counter Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, Puel had his side attack the Blues, not giving their players – who had a high-intensity game against Arsenal in midweek – a moment’s rest.

Pushing their hosts with Vardy and Mahrez, the Foxes were a constant threat on Chelsea’s back line and had the best of the chances in the first half.

Norwich City
With Leicester frustrating the Blues, Chelsea’s players were subject to 90 minutes of high-octane football in their quest to gain all three points.

One man who would have been rubbing his hands following the game is Norwich City boss Daniel Farke.

With the Canaries travelling to Stamford Bridge on Wednesday in the FA Cup third-round replay, Chelsea would have wanted to have the game wrapped up as early as possible so they could rest some key players for the midweek game.

And with Chelsea’s lack of squad depth, Norwich may fancy their chances of cup shock on Wednesday.

Losers
Antonio Conte
Currently, Chelsea rely heavily on one system to beat teams – their 3-5-2. But when they struggle, Antonio Conte does not have a Plan B or C to rescue them.

A system so dependant on Eden Hazard, with Belgian poor against Leicester, Chelsea could not find a way to break down the Foxes defence.

When looking to the bench, Conte did not have the players required to change the game as Morata once again struggled.

When looking to the bench, Conte did not have the players required to change the game despite Willian and Pedro coming on as Morata once again struggled and Cahill’s injury took up one of their options.

David Luiz
Further doubts have been cast over David Luiz’s future at Chelsea as the Brazilian was only named on the bench despite Conte’s rotation.

With Andreas Christensen rested, Luiz would normally have been the replacement playing in the centre of Chelsea’s back three.

However, Gary Cahill was chosen for that job with Antonio Rudiger and Cesar Azpilicueta playing either side.

And when the Chelsea captain had to be taken off with a hamstring injury in the first half, Christensen was called upon as opposed to Luiz.

Alvaro Morata
Just two goals in eight Premier League games, Morata’s poor form continued against Leicester.

Alvaro Morata failed to have a single shot against Leicester
Almost everything about the Spaniard’s game was off, as he was once again left down by poor runs, poor touches and in some cases just rotten luck.

Morata has also built a reputation of late for being weak on the ball and it was shown once again as the striker went down easily on numerous occasions when staying on his feet would have been the better option.

But with no real competition or back up to rescue Chelsea, Morata looks likely to continue his struggles in front of goal.

Ben Chilwell
With Leicester in control and looking the most likely of the two teams to score, the last thing they would have needed was to be reduced to 10 men.

But Ben Chilwell received two yellow cards inside five minutes in the second half, giving his side a tough final 20 minutes.

The first came in the 63rd minute for bringing down Willian on the right-hand side of the pitch and just five minutes later as he caught Victor Moses high after lunging in to try and win the ball.

Fortunately for Chilwell Leicester held out for a draw, but the defender can count himself lucky he did not ruin his side’s hard work.