Leicester return to summit as Chelsea woes continue – Betrayed Mou vows to fight on

This news has been read 6967 times!

LEICESTER, England, Dec 14 ,(Agencies): Sublime goals from Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez sent Leicester City back to the Premier League summit after a deserved 2-1 win over lacklustre Chelsea whose march to the title last season seems a distant memory.

The prolific Vardy, whose record run of 11 consecutive Premier League goals came to an end at Swansea City last weekend, beat goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois with a crisp volley from playmaker Mahrez’s delightful cross after 34 minutes.

Algeria international Mahrez curled in a stunning second from the edge of the area three minutes into the second half to put Leicester, continuing a remarkable turnaround after escaping relegation last season, on 35 points, two clear of Arsenal.

Substitute Loic Remy gave the visitors hope with a close-range headed goal 13 minutes from time to set up a tense finish but the hosts held out to leave Chelsea mired in 16th place on 15 points from 16 games — one point above the relegation zone.

“We played against the champions but we want to make a fantastic match for our fans because they believe, they are dreaming,” said Leicester manager Claudio Ranieri, savouring victory against his former side.

“It is good if they (the fans) continue to dream but for us it was important to make a great performance with a fantastic spirit. Also tactically, I am very satisfied. We concentrated for 95 minutes against the champions. That is not easy.”

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho agreed. “They deserved to win because they were better than us during a longer period of time,” he said. “We were the best team for 20-25 minutes, maybe a maximum of 30 minutes. They were the best team for an hour.”

Victory was extra sweet for Ranieri who was sacked by Chelsea in 2004, a year after Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich took ownership of the London club.

Ranieri had led Chelsea to their highest league placing for 49 years and their first Champions League semi-final, which they lost to AS Monaco, but his reward was the sack.

He was replaced by Jose Mourinho whose second spell in charge of Chelsea has come increasingly under the spotlight.

They have lost nine of their opening 16 top-flight games for the first time since 1978-79, a season in which they were relegated.

Chelsea’s woes were compounded by a first-half injury suffered by their Belgium forward Eden Hazard who hobbled off with an apparent hip problem after a challenge from Premier League top scorer Vardy.

England striker Vardy (15 goals) and Mahrez (11) have scored 26 times between them this season and they again lit up the King Power stadium with their intelligent running, pace and trickery.

Leicester, with one league defeat since losing at home to Chelsea in April — a run of 20 games — had the swagger of side sky-high on confidence and a dominant start was rewarded with Vardy’s opener. With that sense of anticipation of a striker at the top of his game, he escaped the attentions of John Terry to send a fizzing volley past Courtois from the influential Mahrez’s seventh assist of the season.

Chelsea rarely threatened in the first half and when Mahrez beat Courtois with a sumptuous strike, Mourinho’s men had it all to do.

They huffed and puffed without any spark until Remy headed in fellow substitute Pedro’s cross but they failed to create any meaningful chances to salvage a point and take some of the pressure off their beleaguered manager.

Mourinho insists he will fight to stay as Chelsea manager after accusing his players of betraying him in their 2-1 defeat at Premier League leaders Leicester City.

Mourinho told Chelsea’s underachieving stars to be humble as they look to turn around their dismal defence of the English title and claimed he wants to remain in charge.

Chelsea have lost nine of their 16 league games so far this season and sit just one point above the relegation zone, while Leicester climbed back to the top thanks to goals from Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez at the King Power Stadium on Monday.

“I feel like my work was betrayed,” said Mourinho.

“I worked four days on this match and prepared everything relating to the opponents.

“I identified four movements where they score almost all their goals.

“My players got all that information but we still conceded the first and the second goals from those movements.”

Mourinho claimed his team’s hopes of a top-four finish are over after they fell 20 points behind Leicester, despite substitute Loic Remy scoring to give them hope with 13 minutes remaining.

Chelsea’s latest flop is certain to bring renewed reports that Mourinho is on the verge of being sacked, but he is determined to oversee a turnaround and urged his players to show humility as they look to change their fortunes.

“The players who are not performing well must for sure feel attacked in their pride and their self esteem,” he said.

“They have to do everything to get results in a humble way.

“The players at this minute cannot feel top players or they are superstars.

“They have to feel ‘I am not the player of the season, not the World champion, not the Premier League champion’.

“The players have to put their feet on the ground and be humble.

“They have to look to the Leicester players and feel these are the top players.

“They have to look to Sunderland and Watford and say we are at the same level as you are.”

Asked whether he believed he would remain in charge, the 52-year-old said: “I want to be, clearly.

“I have no doubt and I am not afraid of a big challenge. I want to stay.

“I hope Mr (owner Roman) Abramovich and the board want me to stay because I want to stay.

“I accept we are around the relegation zone, I don’t accept we are in a relegation battle.” Mourinho gave a more cryptic response to questions about Eden Hazard, who appeared to ignore his manager’s request to continue when the Belgium midfielder limped off with a first-half injury.

“He made the decision in a few seconds, he was on the floor, he came off, when he went on to try he immediately decided to go back,” said Mourinho. “I have to believe he is injured.” In contrast to Chelsea’s troubled title defence, Leicester have lost just once all season in the league and sit two points clear of Arsenal at the summit. But manager Claudio Ranieri insists reaching 40 points to ensure another season in the top flight remains his only objective.

“For our fans we are top of the league but for my players we need another five points,” he said. “Now we have Everton and Liverpool away and Manchester City and Bournemouth, who are a fantastic team, at home. “These are very tough matches. Let me achieve 40 points and then I will think about the next goal.” And Ranieri dismissed fears that Vardy and Mahrez could leave in January after their superb seasons. “Nobody can buy them,” he said. “They don’t have the money to buy them. “I don’t want to put a price on them. For me they don’t have a price.”

This news has been read 6967 times!