Chelsea were comfortable winners over Leicester City on Saturday.
Saturday afternoon saw Chelsea hosting Leicester City at Stamford Bridge in the weekend’s early kick-off.
The game was a fascinating clash for several reasons but primarily the battle in midfield was the one getting much of the attention.
It proved to be a happy afternoon for the home side as goals from Diego Costa, Eden Hazard and Victor Moses saw Antonio Conte’s team to a 3-0 win.
Before the game, we compared ex-Foxes midfielder N’Golo Kante with his former midfielder partner Danny Drinkwater to see how the two have fared this season.
As it transpired the duo were level, with them both coming out on top in four of eight areas each. So how did the two players compare in Saturday’s game? We found out.
Surprisingly, considering the result, it was a win for Drinkwater as he won in five of the eight areas analysed in the game.
He managed more touches than his former teammate, 123 compared to 100, although they were both level for unsuccessful touches with one apiece.
Defensively he was the better, winning more tackles, five compared to three; posting more ball recoveries, 16 compared to eight; and winning the ball in the midfield third more often.
Kante was much better when it came to interceptions, though, as he posted five to Drinkwater’s tally of one.
Passing-wise Drinkwater posted more accurate passes, 87 compared to 75, although the two were level in terms of successful final-third passes.
Interestingly Kante had the better passing accuracy, with his score of 87% slightly higher than Drinkwater’s 85%.
A win for Drinkwater, then, although given that Chelsea ran out comfortable winners Kante is not likely to be too concerned.
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