In a highly anticipated conclusion to another Barclays Premier League weekend, Leicester City sent Chelsea back down to earth and reinforced the reality that they are in a relegation battle almost halfway into the league campaign.
The cinematic result of both Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez having stellar performances was far from make-believe, with Vardy being assisted from an outstanding cross from Mahrez and the Algerian with a goal of the week candidate.
Leicester City return to top of the league table (1st, 16 GP, 10-5-1, 35 PTS) a week before Christmas, compared to the shocking performances by the Blues this season (16th, 16 GP, 4-3-9, 15 PTS). Chelsea sit just one point above the relegation zone, despite making it through to the Round of 16 in the UEFA Champions League this past week.
Intensity & Confidence - Disbelief & Hesitation
From the first whistle, the atmosphere, acoustics and voice around King Power Stadium was inviting as both clubs continuously battled for possession back and forth around the pitch. The high pace of the match is met by numerous Chelsea corners that somehow have proven to be worthless for the Blues this season.
Leicester had a few set pieces of their own in around the penalty area, but they were simple for Thibaut Courtois to gather. Riyad Mahrez's effort in the Chelsea half began to sprout after forcing Courtois to make fairly easy saves. Danny Drinkwater was substituted off in the 15th minute because of a hamstring issue.
Vardy opens the scoring
After another ten minutes of battle including the usual Diego Costa altercations that included Wes Morgan and a few other Leicester players across the match, Jamie Vardy caused Eden Hazard to come off with an injury after a questionable tackle in the 31st minute. Eden Hazard appeared to want nothing with Jose Mourinho or the bench as he limped towards the dressing room with the medical staff.
Pedro Rodriguez was forced to have an immediate warm-up to be substituted on. In an imminent pulse of play directly after Hazard came off the pitch, Mahrez delivered the tasty cross to Jamie Vardy who finished it past Courtois. That was his league-best 15th goal so far in the 2015-2016 season.
At the brink of the half, Jamie Vardy's goal was all that separated the clubs despite the continuation of corners by the Blues and shots by Marc Albrighton for Leicester City. It was safe to say that the passing sideways in front of the opposing defensive back line game-plan that Chelsea seem to implement every game is still not enough for Jose Mourinho's men.
Mahrez adds to the tally, Remy nets in vain
Riyad Mahrez would beautifully curl a finesse shot around Thibaut Courtois and Chelsea left-back Cesar Azpilicueta, who stood dancing in front of the dancing midfielder in the 47th minute. This created an appalling decision for Mourinho to substitute captain John Terry for Cesc Fabregas. It became apparent that desperate times called for desperate measures.
With time gradually running away from the defending champions, Loic Remy replaced Oscar in the 69th minute to add to whatever hope was left for the Blues to gather a result. In around seven minutes, a cross from Pedro found Remy's forehead and ended up behind Kasper Schmeichel. The tiring legs of the Leicester squad were now warned to step up again to save their win.
This became evident after more than three chances were coughed up by Branislav Ivanovic, Pedro, and Diego Costa to place the ball in the goal and give their club the edge. Gokhan Inler and Shinji Okazaki would eventually come off for both goalscorers as Leicester City maintained their composure in one of their most memorable wins in history.