Leicester 2-0 Chelsea: The one Brendan Rodgers finally beat Chelsea

Christian Pulisic is all Chelsea fans today

Tuesday night's defeat at the King Power did not feel good. Defeats never do - it's the nature of the beast. Despite Leicester having a brilliant season under Brendan Rodgers, they are now top of the table after all, this felt like a particularly difficult defeat to digest. Which comes down to the performance itself rather than the final scoreline. There didn't appear to be a lot of fight coming from within the players themselves - but is it all a perception.

We are currently inundated with nothing but negativity. Pandemic. Lockdown. The dumpster fire that was the Trump administration. There's been a lot of sh*t go down over the last 12 months and it can't help but seep in. There is the potential that people are re-directing that energy towards other outlets. Football has given many people a distraction from the impending doom but in that, everyone's emotions seem to be super heightened. Since the start of the season, Arsenal have gone from Mikel Arteta overthrowing Pep Guardiola, to relegation fodder, back to European challengers. We are only half way through the season. Pace yourselves.

At the start of LAST MONTH, Chelsea were top of the table, amid a run of 17 matches unbeaten. Not six weeks later, 'fans' are calling for Frank Lampard's head insisting he has no idea what he's doing. Pace yourselves. This is a strange season, compressed, no pre-season, loads of new faces. And literally anyone can beat anyone. Chelsea beat Fulham on the weekend. But Fulham managed to defeat high-flying Leicester. There are still nearly 60 points to be played for. It's a long old season - and if it's making you this angry - maybe you need a break from football.

None of this means that the game was good. Although credit where it's due, Chelsea were playing well in the build-up to the penalty that VAR cruelly snatched away. A goal at that point would not have been undeserving based on the balance of play at that point. And had the penalty been awarded, maybe the game would have been a lot different. But the players need to dig deep and not let their heads go down - because more than anything, these young players look devoid of confidence. They need to find their swagger again.

Sloppy work - but James Maddison was in top form

Leicester are well-drilled and organised which very much highlighted the flaws in Chelsea's current form. The defence was very sloppy - Edouard Mendy getting caught out in no-man's land. And James Maddison highlighted that Chelsea have a tendency to 'switch-off' during set-pieces. If opposition players know it, Frank Lampard needs to do something sooner than later to sort it out. It's a weakness that can get exploited again and again.

While most seem to focus on the issues at the back - or the shockingly flat attack, I'm worried what's been happened in the midfield over the last handful of games. How much Chelsea are getting overrun in midfield is likely the heart of most of these issues. They're not getting the ball into the final third and they're leaving the defence hideously exposed. While Mateo Kovacic made a case for himself last season as one of Chelsea's top performers, he has been a shadow of himself this year. And I'm no longer sure what Jorginho has to offer on the pitch. N'Golo Kante has had both brilliant and not so brilliant matches this season - and it looks like his injury problems are back. It might be Billy Gilmour time.

Only Chelsea's two subs had more touches of the ball than either Tammy Abraham or Callum Hudson-Odoi. In fact, Mendy had the ball as much as they two of them combined. Not what you want from any match. Neither were to blame for the defeat itself, but if they're on to run and move the ball around quickly, they might have to take the initiative to pick the ball up deeper and make magic for themselves. Frank Lampard does not yet know his best team. So every match is like an audition for your position at the moment. They did not do enough to guarantee their place in the next lineup. 

On paper, Chelsea's next three matches are winnable. Luton Town are mid-table in the Championship this season, Wolves are second-from bottom on the form table and Burnley have won just one of their last 13 matches against Chelsea and have won just 1 of their last 9 Premier League matches on the road. Focus should be on those two Premier League matches, but a decent cup run would not go amiss in easing some of the chatter and doom and gloom that is seeping in.

Pace yourselves you lot

jb xx

RESULT: Leicester 0-2 Chelsea

GOALS: Ndidi 6', Maddison 41'

CHELSEA XI: Mendy, James, Rudiger, Thiago Silva, Chilwell, Mount, Kovacic, Hudson-Odoi (Werner 68), Havertz (Ziyech 67), Pulisic, Abraham

STAR MAN: Mason Mount