Chelsea take on Leicester City in the final of the oldest cup competition in the world on the 15th of May at Wembley.
Both sides currently occupy top four positions with 3 games to go in the Premier League and have both displayed exceptional football this season. Chelsea have been reinvigorated since Tomas Tuchel’s arrival in January and have reached both the FA Cup and Champions League finals this season under the German. Leicester meanwhile have continued their upward trend under Brendan Rodgers and have managed to break the monopoly of the Big 6 in England.
Road to Wembley
Both Chelsea and Leicester have not had easy routes to the final with the Blues defeating Manchester City 1-0 in the semi-final while the Foxes knocked out 12-time winners Manchester United in the quarter-finals stage.
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Chelsea previously won the competition in 2018 and are chasing their 6th FA Cup trophy since Roman Abramovic bought the club in 2003 and will want to make amends for their 2-1 loss in last season’s final to Arsenal. Leicester on the other hand, hold the record for the most finals appearances without ever winning an FA Cup and will be gunning for their first piece of silverware since their incredible Premier League victory in 2016.
Tactical Preview
TACTICALLY, Tomas Tuchel will probably continue to use the 3-4-3 system that brought him great success in the semi-finals of the Champions League against Real Madrid. Christensen, Silva and Rudiger part of the back three followed by Kante and Jorginho in midfield and Mount, Werner and Havertz up front. It will be interesting to see how Brendan Rodgers counters this system tactically and if he continues using three at the back, considering central defender Jonny Evans is doubtful for the final due to injury.
Players to watch out for:
Leicester City
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Kelechi Iheanacho has emerged as the star man for the foxes in recent months and has scored the most number of goals amongst Premier League players since February. The Nigerian striker is the top scorer in this season’s FA Cup with 4 goals and has thrived alongside veteran striker Jamie Vardy.
Chelsea
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Chelsea, are a team littered with superstars but the most vital cog in Tuchel’s system is their midfield engine N’Golo Kante. The World Cup winner was awarded man of the match in both legs of the semi-final against Real Madrid and plays a major role in progressing the ball from defence into midfield and breaking up the play high up the pitch.
This fixture is also more than just a cup final between two of the best sides in the country. It’s a landmark event that sees 20,000 fans return to the stadium as football tries to recover from the grips of the pandemic and find some semblance of normalcy. Will Chelsea be able to kick-start the Tuchel era with a piece of silverware or will the Foxes spoil Chelsea’s party and hand the blues their second consecutive defeat in the FA Cup final.
[Image Credit: The Emirates FA Cup]
Shivaan Shah