Leicester City and Chelsea will compete in this year’s FA Cup final on May 15 after both edged their semi-final clashes 1-0 at Wembley.
The Blues reached a fourth showpiece in five seasons after upsetting a lacklustre Manchester City thanks to Hakim Ziyech’s goal, presenting Thomas Tuchel with his first chance to win silverware since taking over as manager in January.
bet365 make Chelsea 11/10 (2.10) favourites to win the match inside 90 minutes and lift the trophy for the second time in three years, having also done so in 2018 when Eden Hazard’s penalty was enough to see them past Manchester United.
Leicester have never won the FA Cup and are 12/5 (3.40) outsiders to finally break that duck 52 years after they last reached the final.
The Foxes qualified for this stage after a fairly tedious semi-final victory over Southampton which saw Kelechi Iheanacho score with the only shot on target in the entire match.
Only two of the last 13 finals have gone to extra time and it is 12/5 (3.40) that this one needs an additional 30 minutes – and potentially penalties – to split the sides.
These teams have recent history in the FA Cup, with Chelsea winning a fourth-round tie when they met in January 2020 and a quarter-final match in 2018, both at King Power Stadium.
However, Premier League clashes have told a different story. Leicester are actually unbeaten in six top-flight clashes against the Blues, albeit drawing four of those, and will be hoping to carry that form to Wembley next month.
Six of the last eight fixtures between these teams in all competitions have featured less than three strikes and a repeat of that pays out at 9/10 (1.90) with bet365, while the reverse is also offered at 9/10 (1.90), and an FA Cup final seeing over 2.5 strikes would mark the sixth time in eight such showpieces that it has landed.
Both teams to score, which has happened in three of the five most recent FA Cup finals, is just 7/10 (1.70) with the bookmakers clearly expecting some action at Wembley in May.
Odds correct at the time of writing. Please gamble responsibly.
