Chelsea vs Leicester City predicted XI : Unchanged 3-4-2-1

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LEICESTER, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 20: Ben Chilwell of Chelsea and Reece James of Chelsea at full time of the Premier League match between Leicester City and Chelsea at The King Power Stadium on November 20, 2021 in Leicester, England. (Photo by James Williamson – AMA/Getty Images) /

Reece James (No. 24) Right wingback, England

Reece James has been very good this season, and he generally played well against Liverpool in the FA Cup final. He has contributed to Chelsea this season in all areas including attack, defense and chance creation. James’ pressing and work rate have been equally as excellent. The Englishman has been involved in 12 goals and assists in the league for Chelsea this season. He has also created seven clear-cut chances, which is just two less than Mason Mount, who leads the pack. James helps the Blues to stretch the play. His superb crossing technique has been a constant source of quality chances for his side. Unfortunately, he doesn’t do it enough.

Jorginho (No. 5) Central midfielder, Italy

Jorginho has been consistent this season, a trait that Chelsea has not been for the most part in the same period. Jorginho has had a roller-coaster season as he went from winning the 2020 Euros and coming in third in the Ballon d’Or ranking to not qualifying for the upcoming World Cup. This will be the second time in a row that Italy will not feature in the World Cup, which is surely disappointing for the midfielder.

Jorginho was phenomenal in the FA Cup final. His distribution was good as he completed five out of nine attempted long balls. He was excellent in the duels, as well, as he won 11 out of 16 contested duels. The maestro also made 11 positive defensive actions, including one block, four interceptions and three tackles. He was Chelsea’s most important outfielder on the day. His return to the side also saw the Blues return to clean sheets, which shouldn’t be surprising as he leads Chelsea in tackles and interceptions per game in the league this season.

Mateo Kovacic (No. 8) Central midfielder, Croatia

Mateo Kovacic probably starts—despite nursing a knock—as Tuchel will look to prioritize possession in central midfield. Jorginho’s passing, coupled with Kovacic’s superb dribbling, will almost certainly guarantee that Chelsea controls the midfield.

Marcos Alonso (No. 3) Left wingback, Spain

Marcos Alonso stood up to be counted against Liverpool in the FA Cup final. His dribbling in that game was quite poor though, which makes you wonder why he attempted as many as five dribbles considering that he has never been good in that department.

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