Ireland international makes full Premier League debut as Chelsea overcome Leicester

IRELAND INTERNATIONAL Kasey McAteer made his full Premier League debut as Chelsea beat Leicester City 2-1 in the Premier League today.

The 23-year-old was an important figure in the Foxes’ successful promotion bid last season, making 23 Championship appearances.

Before this afternoon, he had made six Premier League appearances — including five this season — but all had come from the substitutes bench.

McAteer almost equalised in the first half, as his curled effort went just wide of the post.

He completed 71 minutes before being replaced by Stephy Mavididi.

The winger is also developing into an important player for Ireland under Heimir Hallgrimsson — he has made four substitute appearances in the Nations League campaign including off the bench against England last weekend.

Enzo Maresca enjoyed a winning return to the King Power Stadium.

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Maresca led the Foxes to the Championship title in his only season in charge but left for Stamford Bridge in the summer.

He was tasked with rebuilding the Blues into a Premier League force and looks like he could be the man to finally make sense of their vast and expensively assembled squad as goals from Nicolas Jackson and Enzo Fernandez sent them third in the table ahead of the afternoon kick-offs.

Maresca’s replacement Steve Cooper is finding his new job much tougher and, with just two wins in their opening 12 games, the pressure is building on the former Nottingham Forest manager.

Leicester’s penalty by Jordan Ayew in the fifth minute of injury time was their only shot on target and this was an insipid display which did not please fans.

Chelsea dominated from the off and were rewarded with the 15th-minute lead, though Leicester defender Wout Faes will not want to watch it back.

The Belgian centre-back had several chances to clear a long ball but was continually outmuscled by Jackson and when the Chelsea striker got it back from Fernandez he coolly converted with the outside of his foot.

The game was being played entirely in Leicester’s half and the chances kept coming, with Moses Caicedo skewing wide when a loose ball fell kindly to him on the edge of the area and Noni Madueke forcing Mads Hermansen into a fine stretching save after dancing into the area.

The England international thought he had doubled the lead just after the half-hour when he swept home Marc Cucurella’s pullback, but the flag went up as the Spaniard was offside.

Leicester eventually turned up, albeit briefly, and fashioned good chances to equalise before the break, including Wilfred Ndidi prodding wide after Victor Kristiansen’s pull back fell into his path.

That spell was brief, though, and Madueke had another chance to make it two before the break but he put Jackson’s cross wide after a lightning quick breakaway.

It was turning out to be one of those days for Madueke as he then, inadvertently, stopped his side from adding a second early in the second half.

Jackson’s shot was superbly saved by Hermansen and Cole Palmer was destined to have an easy tap-in, but Madueke was in the way and blocked the shot as he took evasive action.

The second half was one-way traffic and the second goal eventually came in the 75th minute.

Jackson’s header from Cucurella’s cross was straight at Hermansen but the rebound fell perfectly for Fernandez to head home.

Leicester thought they should have had a penalty late on when Stephy Mavididi went down under a challenge from Wesley Fofana, but referee Andrew Madley waved away protests and VAR agreed with him.

Madley did point to the spot deep into injury time after VAR advised him that Romeo Lavia fouled Bobby De Cordova-Reid and Ayew slotted home.

Additional reporting by Paul Fennessy