Despite Chelsea starting on the front foot and opening the scoring through Sol Gordon, the Foxes reacted and soon equalised via Kevon Gray.

Hassan Sulaiman’s side restored the lead midway through the opening period as Landon Emenalo’s fine volley found the net, but Leicester ensured the game was level at the break after Kirsten Otchere struck.

In the second period, Leicester emerged as the dominant side and struck three goals in 21 minutes to open up an advantage the young Blues couldn't reduce.

Intensity from the start

Sulaiman’s side started the contest the brighter – and the opening goal arrived inside three minutes.

Leo Cardoso stole the ball from a Leicester defender and spotted Gordon on the wing. He sprinted into the area and fired the ball accurately into the bottom corner. The Foxes keeper had no chance.

However, Chelsea's lead didn’t last long as Leicester equalised through a clever set piece. A swinging cross from Kaleb Dyke’s corner found Gray in the centre of the box, who connected with a perfect header that squeezed between Jack Austin and the far post.

Chelsea stayed resilient, fought for possession, and made smart moves inside the Foxes' area, which resulted in a brilliant Blues goal.

Emenalo found the back of the net with a stunning volley from the edge of the box; he picked up an attempted clearance from a Leicester defender, controlled the ball perfectly, and found out the top corner.

We maintained our momentum and were awarded a penalty when Jake Donohue brought down Gordon. The referee, without hesitation, pointed to the spot, however, Frankie Runham's spot kick strike hit the post.

Leicester then hit back as Will Lawrence intercepted Ollie Harrison’s loose pass and found Otchere inside the area. He rifled the ball into the top corner beyond Austin’s reach and the game was level at the break.

Second-half struggles

Chelsea came out after the interval with force and nearly scored through a stinging effort from Cardoso. But in this end-to-end game, the visitors finally opened up an advantage of their own.

Jeremy Monga produced tricky footwork to enter the area, evaded the challenges from Chelsea defenders, and slotted a through ball to Otchere, who calmly finished past Austin.

In an attempt to turn the game around, the Under-18s boss turned to fresh legs from the bench, which nearly paid off. Yayah Idrissi applied instant pressure on the Foxes' defence with his pace, entered the box and drilled a low strike that went just wide of the target.

However, Leicester found their fourth goal of the afternoon when Laolu Omobolaji scored from close range after good work in the build-up from Birmark Owusu.

Leicester rounded off the scoring in the dying minutes when Owusu won the ball from a Chelsea defender and sent a long ball through to Monga. He weaved his way into the box, avoided the Chelsea defenders, and fired the ball into the corner of the net.

Despite late efforts from Emenalo and schoolboy Ryan Kavuma-McQueen in the final moments, we were unable to break through the visiting defence.

As a result, our wait for our first points of the 2024/25 season continues.

The teams

Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Jack Austin; Joseph Wheeler-Henry, Harry McGlinchey; Ollie Harrison (Walter Nutter 83), Lewi Richards, Olutayo Subuloye, Frankie Runham, Landon Emenalo; Leo Cardoso (Reggie Walsh 83), Sol Gordon (Ryan Kavuma-McQueen 73); Chizaram Ezenwata (Yahya Idrissi 62)
Unused subs: Hudson Sands
Scorers: Gordon 2, Emenalo 23
Booked: Gordon 51, Richards 53, Austin 82

Leicester: Jake Donohue, Olabade Aluko, Reiss Khela, Willa Lawrence (Jeremy Monga h/t), Alpha Diallo, Kevan Gray, Jake Evans (Birmark Owusu 71), Kaleb Dyke, Kirsten Otchere (Maxwell Adedji 76), Louis Page, Laolu Omobolaji (Hugo De Lisle 87)
Unused subs: Lewis McNab
Scorers: Gray 12,Otchere 42, 69, Omobolaji 81, Monga 83
Booked: Dyke 60, Evans 61, Page 63