Match ends, Chelsea 1, Leicester City 1.
Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel says finishing third in the Premier League should be seen as a "miracle" given N'Golo Kante's injury struggles.
The Blues' 1-1 draw with Leicester puts them three points clear of Tottenham, in fourth, with a game to go.
Chelsea have a superior goal difference of 18 over Spurs.
Kante has missed more than half the season with various injuries and Tuchel said: "He is the guy who makes the difference."
The German added: "I think he is our key, key, key player; but key, key, key players need to be on the pitch.
"He plays only 40% of the games. So it's maybe a miracle that we arrived in third place.
"Because he is our Mo Salah, he is our [Virgil] Van Dijk, he is our [Kevin] De Bruyne, he is simply that player. He is our Neymar, he is our Kylian Mbappe."
Chelsea, beaten in the FA Cup final by Liverpool at the weekend, fell behind early on at Stamford Bridge when James Maddison curled a fine effort beyond goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.
However, Marcos Alonso equalised towards the end of the first half when he was picked out superbly by Reece James and volleyed in.
Chelsea dominated the second half and had numerous chances to take all three points.
Hakim Ziyech went close with a free kick while Romelu Lukaku - who had been largely quiet - headed wide.
But Christian Pulisic failed to convert the best chance for a winner when he sliced wide from eight yards with the goal at his mercy.
The result means Chelsea stay third, three points ahead of Tottenham, but with a vastly superior goal difference.
Tuchel's side finish the season at home to relegated Watford on Sunday (16:00 BST) while Leicester, who are ninth, will look cement a top-10 finish when they host Southampton at the same time.
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- Visit our Leicester City page
Chelsea look to the future as season draws to a close
Any jeopardy for Chelsea in this game disappeared on Monday, when their place in the top four was confirmed by Arsenal's defeat at Newcastle.
But with back-to-back home fixtures to finish the campaign, the Blues had a chance to end on a high before switching focus to the future - and the pressing issue of getting the club's ownership sorted.
Initially, Chelsea were sluggish, a possible hangover from their FA Cup loss, but they improved as the game wore on and were unfortunate not to take all three points.
That they didn't win was down to their inability to finish chances, a problem that has plagued them this season.
Maddison caps a fine season to boost England hopes
Maddison, named Leicester's player of the season earlier this week, is enjoying his best Premier League goal return in a season, taking his tally to 11 with his striker at Stamford Bridge.
The midfielder had a spell out of the team in the early months of the campaign when he admitted he was struggling for confidence but has not looked back since returning.
In total, he has scored 17 goals in all competitions, chipping in with 11 assists, which surely will not have gone unnoticed by England boss Gareth Southgate as he plans his squad for the World Cup in Qatar later this year.
Player of the match
JamesReece James
Chelsea
Avg
- Squad number24Player nameJamesAverage rating
6.86
- Squad number7Player nameKantéAverage rating
6.78
- Squad number6Player nameThiago SilvaAverage rating
6.56
- Squad number3Player nameAlonsoAverage rating
6.52
- Squad number29Player nameHavertzAverage rating
6.42
- Squad number16Player nameMendyAverage rating
6.18
- Squad number14Player nameChalobahAverage rating
6.15
- Squad number22Player nameZiyechAverage rating
6.10
- Squad number12Player nameLoftus-CheekAverage rating
6.02
- Squad number2Player nameRüdigerAverage rating
6.02
- Squad number5Player nameJorginhoAverage rating
5.84
- Squad number10Player namePulisicAverage rating
5.71
- Squad number28Player nameAzpilicuetaAverage rating
5.71
- Squad number9Player nameLukakuAverage rating
5.44
Leicester City
Avg
- Squad number22Player nameDewsbury-HallAverage rating
6.83
- Squad number3Player nameFofanaAverage rating
6.81
- Squad number10Player nameMaddisonAverage rating
6.73
- Squad number1Player nameSchmeichelAverage rating
6.55
- Squad number6Player nameEvansAverage rating
6.34
- Squad number27Player nameCastagneAverage rating
6.17
- Squad number18Player nameAmarteyAverage rating
6.09
- Squad number33Player nameThomasAverage rating
6.08
- Squad number24Player nameMendyAverage rating
6.08
- Squad number7Player nameBarnesAverage rating
6.05
- Squad number14Player nameIheanachoAverage rating
6.01
- Squad number17Player nameAyoze PérezAverage rating
5.81
- Squad number9Player nameVardyAverage rating
5.80
Line-ups
Chelsea
Formation 3-4-2-1
- 16Mendy
- 14Chalobah
- 6Thiago Silva
- 2RüdigerBooked at 66mins
- 24James
- 5JorginhoBooked at 85mins
- 7KantéBooked at 47minsSubstituted forLoftus-Cheekat 72'minutes
- 3Alonso
- 22Ziyech
- 10PulisicSubstituted forAzpilicuetaat 72'minutes
- 9LukakuBooked at 59minsSubstituted forHavertzat 78'minutes
Substitutes
- 1Arrizabalaga
- 12Loftus-Cheek
- 17Saúl
- 18Barkley
- 19Mount
- 23Kenedy
- 28Azpilicueta
- 29Havertz
- 31Sarr
Leicester
Formation 3-1-4-2
- 1Schmeichel
- 3Fofana
- 6EvansBooked at 64mins
- 18Amartey
- 24Mendy
- 27Castagne
- 10Maddison
- 22Dewsbury-Hall
- 33Thomas
- 9VardySubstituted forPérezat 78'minutes
- 14IheanachoSubstituted forBarnesat 63'minutes
Substitutes
- 4Söyüncü
- 7Barnes
- 11Albrighton
- 12Ward
- 17Pérez
- 20Choudhury
- 21Ricardo Pereira
- 29Daka
- 37Lookman
- Referee:
- Stuart Attwell
- Attendance:
- 31,478
Match Stats
- Possession
- Home67%
- Away33%
- Shots
- Home20
- Away2
- Shots on Target
- Home7
- Away1
- Corners
- Home6
- Away0
- Fouls
- Home13
- Away7
Live Text
Post update
Full Time
Second Half ends, Chelsea 1, Leicester City 1.
Post update
Foul by Marcos Alonso (Chelsea).
Post update
Ayoze Pérez (Leicester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Attempt blocked. Reece James (Chelsea) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Ruben Loftus-Cheek.
Post update
Édouard Mendy (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Post update
Foul by Harvey Barnes (Leicester City).
Post update
Offside, Leicester City. Ayoze Pérez tries a through ball, but Harvey Barnes is caught offside.
Booking
Jorginho (Chelsea) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Post update
Foul by Jorginho (Chelsea).
Post update
Wesley Fofana (Leicester City) wins a free kick on the right wing.
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Foul by Kai Havertz (Chelsea).
Post update
Wesley Fofana (Leicester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Post update
Attempt blocked. Hakim Ziyech (Chelsea) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Thiago Silva.
Substitution
Substitution, Chelsea. Kai Havertz replaces Romelu Lukaku.
Substitution
Substitution, Leicester City. Ayoze Pérez replaces Jamie Vardy.
Post update
Foul by Hakim Ziyech (Chelsea).
Post update
Wesley Fofana (Leicester City) wins a free kick on the right wing.
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Attempt saved. Trevoh Chalobah (Chelsea) header from very close range is saved in the top centre of the goal. Assisted by Marcos Alonso with a cross.
Post update
Corner, Chelsea. Conceded by Luke Thomas.
Comments
Join the conversation
All teams go through the same, today Man U are suffering while Liverpool deservedly enjoy thier success. Ten years makes such a difference.
To any supporter of any team I would only hope you stay loyal and ignore the baying of hateful people.
Btw congrats Frank!
Big club bias alive and well at the BBC..... well done Foxes, a point away at Stamford Bridge is always a good result
This season can't finish quickly enough !