FA Cup Final Preview: Chelsea take on Leicester City

Champions League-hunting Chelsea will take on the Premier League’s third-placed Leicester City in this year’s FA Cup Final.

In the lead-up to the final, Thomas Tuchel’s revolutionised Chelsea were able to see off quadruple-chasing Manchester City 1-0.

The other semi-final fixture crowned Leicester 1-0 victors over an uninspired Southampton side.

The showdown between Chelsea and Leicester is due to take place on 15 May at Wembley Stadium.

According to Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden, there are discussions and preliminary plans to host 20,000 fans at Wembley for the final. The Leicester-Southampton semi-final was used as a pilot event to test the behaviour of fans as the lockdown restrictions slowly began to ease. The fixture allowed 4,000 in-person spectators at Wembley (though these were largely locals and key workers).

“Even though there were only 4,000 fans, it felt great. It will be amazing when we get supporters back into stadiums. I did hear some Leicester supporters in there and it was really nice,” said Leicester boss Brendan Rodgers.

Despite the occasion, the tie hardly lived up to its pedigree. Both teams started the match conservatively.

Though Southampton started the second-half the brighter of the two, it was Leicester City who eventually broke the deadlock. In-form striker Kelechi Iheanacho finished from close range after a blistering run from Jamie Vardy.

Southampton looked lethargic and offered very little going forward.

Victory for Leicester continues their phenomenal season under Rodgers. Sitting in third place in the Premier League table, Leicester City are in with a real shot at competing in the Champions League next season.

Much of their success was down to a disciplined display from their defenders and midfielders, who kept the Southampton attackers in control for most of the game.

Victory means that Leicester are going to their first FA Cup final since 1969. The last major final the Foxes won was the League Cup in 2000.

On the other hand, defeat for the Saints here rules out any chance at silverware to finish their disappointing 2020/21 season.

Possessing little threat throughout, Southampton looked lethargic and offered very little going forward.

Despite being a side that had not conceded in the tournament up to this point, Southampton’s defence also looked shaky. It felt that the occasion had truly overwhelmed some of the players.

Though relegation should not be a threat, there is no doubt that this will be classed as a disappointing end to a season which started so brightly.

“We saw a not very good football game to be honest, with both teams a little nervous. We had the chance to get to the final. We will try again next year,” said Saints manager Ralph Hasenhüttl, who has been linked to the Tottenham and Bayern Munich managerial vacancies recently.

Chelsea’s semi-final fixture against Manchester City was no more exciting than Leicester-Southampton.

A cagey first half saw both teams trying to feel each other out before Chelsea midfielder Hakim Ziyech opened the scoring.

The win felt like a tactical victory for Tuchel over City’s Pep Guardiola and Chelsea’s goal epitomised that.

A clever run from Timo Werner carved up the City defence and, with goalkeeper Zack Steffen holding a high line, Werner squared the ball to Ziyech, who fired into an open goal.

After defeating Porto in the Champions League to advance to the semi-finals, Chelsea capped off an excellent week with a well-fought victory over City.

It was a very, very strong performance. I’m very happy and proud

– Thomas Tuchel

Since the appointment of Tuchel as manager, Chelsea have looked a rejuvenated side and have managed to revive their season. With an FA Cup final on the line, Chelsea have a very good chance of winning a trophy to show for their excellent recovery.

“It was a very, very strong performance. I’m very happy and proud,” said a smiling Tuchel.

The loss for Manchester City not only crushes any FA Cup dreams but also diminishes their opportunity to win the famed quadruple.

In truth their performance looked tired and leggy. Winning a quadruple is no mean feat, and City were taught that lesson in practise as Guardiola was forced to make eight changes to his usual starting line-up thanks to the frenzy of fixtures.

City do  look on course to win the league however, so, in short, it seemed that Guardiola and City had bigger fish to fry than the FA Cup.

Though their fans will surely be disappointed that they will not be able to see their team in the FA Cup final this year, Manchester City are still on course for a very successful season.

A tough Champions League semi-final fixture against the ever-lethal PSG awaits them later this month after a convincing victory over Borussia Dortmund in the quarter-finals.

Perhaps the biggest disappointment from this loss is the injury that key player Kevin De Bruyne picked up. He is expected to miss at least one game with an ankle injury.

The FA Cup concludes with Chelsea set to take on Leicester City. With 20,000 fans hoping to attend, it will be interesting to see the reception Chelsea receive after they, along with five other English clubs, accepted, and then rejected the widely unpopular European Super League proposals.

It’s Tuchel versus Rodgers. It’s Chelsea versus Leicester. It’s potentially a significant landmark in the return to live spectators at sporting events. It’s the 2020/21 FA Cup final.