Poor second half costs Chelsea against Leicester

For the second straight weekend, Chelsea got off to a great start, only to see it undone in the second half against Leicester.

Chelsea went into halftime leading 1-0 and controlling the game on Sunday against Leicester. However, the Blues could not hold onto their lead as they let Leicester back into the game and had to settle for a 1-1 draw.

Chelsea could not have got off to a better start in their first home game of the season. The Blues could have scored twice before Mason Mount found the back of the net in the seventh minute. Mount robbed Wilfred Ndidi of the ball just outside of the box and scored his first goal of the season.

Mount has been one of the biggest benefactors since Frank Lampard became the Chelsea manager. Lampard has shown a high level of confidence in Mount after the two spent last season at Derby. The 20-year-old Mount has rewarded Lampard for his loyalty and was arguably Chelsea’s best player against Leicester.

Chelsea continued their energetic pace throughout the first half, pressing Leicester into giving the ball away in the first half. The Foxes struggled to string together a couple of passes and failed to advance the ball deep into Chelsea territory. Leicester striker Jamie Vardy was virtually invisible in the first half, as the Foxes were unable to play the ball forward to their top goal scorer.

Chelsea’s aggressive pressing style worked to perfection in the first half but the club could not keep up the energy and intensity in the second half. Halftime allowed Leicester to regroup and make adjustments. In the second half, Leicester were the more intense and energetic side. The Foxes dictated the pace of play and were the far superior team in the second half.

Chelsea struggled to make adjustments on the fly in the second and Leicester had the majority of scoring chances. The Foxes scored their equalizer in the 67th minute as Ndidi made up for his earlier mistake by scoring the tying goal on a James Maddison corner kick. Maddison was excellent in the second half. The Leicester midfielder was seemingly all over the pitch, creating chances for his team.

Lampard simply had no answer for Maddison, who made several key passes and runs in the second half. The Foxes could have won the game had Maddison not blasted the ball over the crossbar from the middle of the box.

Previous Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri was criticized for his deployment of midfielder Jorginho last season. Lampard appeared to be using Jorginho is a similar fashion. While Jorginho can make the perfect pass at times in the attacking half, defensively he struggles to cover ground. Jorginho struggled to mark the likes of Maddison and Youri Tielemans. For the second straight game, Jorginho picked up a yellow card and was subbed off.

While Lampard has shown a strong ability to have his team ready to play in the first half, Chelsea’s second-half struggles could become concerning. Chelsea were significantly outplayed in the second half of their first game of the season against Manchester United. The Blues conceded three second-half goals and lost 4-0. While two games are far too small a sample size to make any judgments on Lampard, Chelsea cannot afford to continually play so poorly in the second half. In-game adjustments are what separate the good managers from the great ones.