Leicester’s in-form skipper and goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel hails club’s history-makers after 1-0 victory over Chelsea helps them win maiden FA Cup
Leicester City’s Youri Tielemans celebrates his match-winning goal
Kasper Schmeichel described leading Leicester City to the club’s first ever FA Cup as a dream come true after he played a huge role in beating Chelsea 1-0 on Saturday.
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Youri Tielemans’s stunning strike just after the hour mark separated the sides. In one moment of magic Tielemans collected possession midway inside the Chelsea half and strode forward before unleashing an unstoppable strike into the top corner past Kepa Arrizabalaga in front of the largest sports attendance in England since the Coronavirus pandemic hit, with 22,000 fans at Wembley.
Leicester City captain Kasper Schmeichel (in green) holds up the FA Cup. Pics/AFP, Getty Images
Five years after the Foxes stunned the Premier League’s giants to become champions, Leicester have claimed English football’s other prestigious trophy at the fifth time of asking. Four times they had previously lost the final, but the last of those was 52 years ago. However, Schmeichel had to rescue his side late on with brilliant saves against Chelsea’s Ben Chilwell and Mason Mount. “I’ve dreamt about this since I was child,” said Schmeichel, whose father Peter Schmeichel won three FA Cups with Manchester United. “We have talked about wanting to win trophies. The performance today, the grit and determination, I’m so proud of everybody, everybody contributed to get to the final. Everyone has played and been sensational,” he added.
Even when Schmeichel was eventually beaten, Chilwell’s late equaliser against his former club was ruled out for offside after a VAR review. “Thank you, VAR! What an amazing technology. I’m really happy. I can’t think of a better goal than this. I’ve scored a few but it’s nice to score in the final of the FA Cup,” said Tielemans.
Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers dedicated the victory to the club’s chairman Aiyawatt ‘Top’ Srivaddhanaprabha. “It is an amazing feeling. I was not aware before I came into Leicester that they had never won the FA Cup. It’s a historic day for the club. This is a monumental performance. What a day for everyone involved with Leicester,” Rodgers said.
Chelsea ’keeper Kepa Arrizabalaga is beaten by a long-ranger from Leicester City’s Youri Tielemans
Meanwhile, Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel was disappointed. “Of course we are disappointed but we are not angry. This performance was not enough to win it,” he said. Both teams sides meet again in three days time at Stamford Bridge in a key clash to decide who secures a top-four finish in the Premiership.
Leicester players show their support for Palestinians
Leicester players Hamza Choudhury and Wesley Fofana showed support for the Palestinians after winning the FA Cup final on Saturday. English midfielder Choudhury and French defender Fofana held up Palestinian flags to show their solidarity for victims of the violent clashes in the region. Choudhury draped the flag over his shoulders as he collected his FA Cup winner’s medal at Wembley.
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