COLE PALMER had an afternoon to forget as he suffered stomach cramps and missed his first penalty as a pro.
The England ace insisted on playing, despite being ill for 24 hours before this hard-fought win.
Marc Cucurella’s second-half strike against Leicester City sent the Blues back into the top four.
Palmer — whose perfect record of 15 spot-kicks for club and country was KO’d by Mads Hermansen — went straight to the loo after being subbed off.
And boss Enzo Maresca said: “Cole didn’t train on Saturday. During the night he didn’t feel well.
“This morning he woke up and said, ‘I want to be on the pitch to help us play in the Champions League’.
“In the last two days, he was completely out. Fever and I don’t know if it’s something I can say in English — diarrhoea.
“But he asked to play and this shows how he wants to bring this club where it belongs.”
Cole’s first-half penalty woe came when Jadon Sancho was fouled by Victor Kristiansen.
Maresca celebrated wildly at the final whistle and revealed Leicester’s tactical trickery meant Chelsea’s pre-match plans had to be ripped up just minutes before kick-off.
Defender Cucurella’s winner was his fourth Prem goal of the season for Chelsea.
Maresca also called on fans to be more positive after boos were heard at half-time at Stamford Bridge as they struggled to brush relegation-bound Leicester aside.
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The Italian said: “I am happy. The main reason is because when we prepare a game, we watch as many games as possible.
“So we watched Leicester and they always played with a line of four.
“They arrived here with a line of five. So all our sessions were rubbish.
“I understand when there is a negative feeling. But today, how many chances did we create in the first half?
“People have to understand this is our style and way we’re going to play.
[boxout headline=”Chelsea ratings vs Leicester as Cucurella causes chaos all-game long but Nkunku just can’t find his feet” featured-image=”33762283″]CHELSEA marked their 120th birthday with a hard-earned win against Leicester.
Enzo Maresca’s side keep their place in the Champions League spots ahead of a tough run of games with a much-needed 1-0 victory.
Chelsea were by far the most threatening side and it didn’t take long for Cole Palmer to get a golden chance to break his eight-game goal drought.
Referee Tim Robinson pointed to the spot this time after Jadon Sancho was brought down in the box.
Palmer stepped up, but his effort was brilliantly saved by Leicester keeper Mads Hermansen.
Chelsea continued to dominate but Maresca left ruing his lack of a target man up top as crosses were swung aimlessly with Pedro Neto in the wars trying to reach them.
With no real threat coming towards Robert Sanchez from Leicester, it looked as though it could be one of those games where they struggle to break down a side despite having the lion’s share of the ball.
A moment of magic was needed as frustrations were growing and Marc Cucurella produced it on the hour mark.
A peach of a strike from outside the area as he lit up Stamford Bridge, as he has on numerous occasions this season, scoring for the second game in a row.
With chances coming and going for both sides, the nervousness among the home support was tangible as the game drew to it’s conclusion, with the relief at the full-time etched on Maresca’s face.
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“When a team creates the amount of chances we did today, you have to be happy. It’s not easy.
“If you think football is just a PlayStation and you win easily — no way. Every game is difficult. We need our fans.”
The Foxes are six points adrift of Prem safety with ten matches left.
But boss Ruud van Nistelrooy said: “The display was really good, a lot of heart, a lot of spirit.
“We don’t know if we will run out of time. What we do know is we have today and tomorrow.”
