The report

The Blues had hoped for a repeat of our Under-18’s last trip to Leicester, when we defeated them 3-1 in the FA Youth Cup early last month, but this time had to fight back to earn a point in the Under-18 Premier League after twice going behind to the Foxes.

Chelsea had two equalisers, scored late in each half via Tyrique George and Donnell McNeilly, to thank for a result which leaves us three points off the top of the table with one game in hand over leaders West Ham United.

A defensive error by Chelsea allowed Leicester to open the scoring inside the first 15 minutes, as we were punished by Leicester midfielder Jake Evans, but that disappointment seemed to spark us into life. A series of chances followed, but we were repeatedly denied by the goalkeeper, as well as two goal-line clearances.

However, we did manage to get level just before the break, when a cross fell to George at the back post and he did well to shift his weight and make room to squeeze a shot low through the sea of bodies in the box.

Further opportunities arrived for us to gain the lead, but we didn’t take them, instead Leicester going ahead again midway through the second half from Joshua King’s effort.

The Blues weren’t done yet, though, and we equalised for a second time in the final minute of normal time, when an indirect free-kick inside the Foxes’ box was laid off for McNeilly to tuck away confidently.

The reaction

Head coach Hassan Sulaiman says his team were expecting a strong response from a Leicester side looking for revenge following their recent FA Youth Cup exit at our hands and, although we fell behind, he was pleased with the team’s reaction after those opening minutes.

‘It was a very different squad to the one we fielded against them in the Youth Cup, so we knew it probably wasn’t going to look as fluid because of the number of changes we had made,’ said Sulaiman.

‘Having said that, the boys that came in played very well. Saheed Olagunju made his first league start at this age group, which was really good for him.

‘Naturally, Leicester were always going to come out firing and we remembered that they had pressed us really aggressively for periods of the game in the Youth Cup. So, we prepared for them to come and press aggressively and be on the front foot, and they did just that.

‘When they went 1-0 up, it became about them trying to manage the game, slow it down… all the little nuances that you would think could help your team get over the line.

‘It was the first match of the year and we’d had the intention of starting really well, as we had finished the last games of 2023. In fairness, although we went 1-0 down, we did have a lot of control and a lot of possession of the ball. We didn’t create as many chances as we would have liked in the first 15 minutes or so, but we came to life once they went ahead.’

Hassan didn’t come away from the game too disappointed, though, despite his team failing to make our chances count and secure all three points, as he believes this is the latest in a series of valuable experiences and challenges his team has faced this season.

‘Upon reflection, I would say that 2-2 was a fair result, we were disappointed not to take all three points as that would have taken us to the top of the league. However, we have spoken about resilience and the number of tests we have passed this season, with comebacks against Tottenham in the Premier League Cup with 10 men, and Southampton in the league.

‘This was a new kind of test – going into the last minute 2-1 down and having to show the character to get something from the game. Again, the boys passed the test and I cited those examples to the boys afterwards.

‘We have had character-building, technical and tactical tests this season and the boys are doing well to keep passing them. You add those experiences to your tank so that you know how to adapt if you face those scenarios again.

‘This game was a real development opportunity. For the boys who haven’t played a lot of games, it was a chance, and for all of the players it was a chance to show the resilience and character needed to get back into a game after going behind.’

The teams

Leicester City 2-2 Chelsea

Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Luke Campbell; Richard Olise, Kaiden Wilson, Saheed Olagunju, Somto Boniface; Reiss Denny (Rio Ngumoha 75), Ollie Harrison; Donnell McNeilly, Harrison McMahon (c), Tyrique George (Shaun Wade 65); Shumaira Mheuka
Unused subs: Jack Austin, Genesis Antwi, Chinonso Chibueze
Scorers: George 42, McNeilly 90
Booked: McNeilly 88

Leicester (4-2-3-1): Harry French, Olabade Aluko, Tristan Thomas, Toby Ononaye, Liam McAlinney, Bobby Amartey, Jake Evans, Kaleb Dyke, Kirsten Otchere, Ryan Donnelly (Will Lawrence 81), Alfie Fisken (Joshua King 45)
Unused subs: Jake Donohue, Reece Evans, Maxwell Adedeji
Scorers: Evans 13, King 71
Booked: McAlinney 53