Chelsea recorded a hard-fought 1-0 victory against Leicester City at Stamford Bridge, with Cole Palmer putting a rare penalty miss behind him to reward three crucial points in the Premier League.
The Blues began well and Palmer was heavily involved, though he saw his perfect penalty record come to an end as Mads Hermansen saved his effort from 12 yards. Chelsea dominated possession but almost handed Leicester an early shock when Robert Sánchez misjudged a dive, Tosin Adarabioyo heading against his own crossbar.
Christopher Nkunku squandered a chance before the interval and Leicester began the second half forcefully, Jamie Vardy stinging Sánchez. But Chelsea steadied themselves, and Marc Cucurella opened the scoring with a low shot from the edge of the box. The Blues pressed on for a second, but Leicester found it hard to create anything clear-cut.
Ultimately Chelsea stood firm to see out a fourth consecutive home league win and return back to the top four, two points clear of Manchester City. Leicester’s fifth successive game without a goal, meanwhile, leaves them six points from safety and deep in relegation trouble.
