As Ben Chilwell took a knee-slide towards the stand in which Gary Lineker was sitting, he cupped both ears.
Presumably, it was not a gesture of support for the sanctioned Match of the Day host, who has often been self-deprecating when it comes to his shell-likes. Instead, it was a response to the pantomime jeers from home fans who remembered the five years of decent service he gave to their club.
And it was probably borne out of some of the frustration felt by Chilwell after the physical setbacks that have blighted his Chelsea career. His sweet first-time volley from a Kalidou Koulibaly cross that came down from the clouds was a symbol of Chilwell’s talent.
That cruciate ligament and hamstring injuries have severely limited his playing time over the past three seasons has been detrimental to the fortunes of his club and, possibly, his country.
Chilwell should certainly feature in Gareth Southgate’s squad when it is named on Thursday. Aside from his goal, Chilwell played with a confidence that is slowly spreading throughout most departments of Graham Potter’s team. At times during this win, their third on the spin, they played with a hint of the swagger you would expect from any side with elite pretensions.
They should probably have been out of sight by the time Patson Daka’s humdinger cancelled out Chilwell’s strike but restored their lead when two of their more prodigious talents hooked up just ahead of half-time.
To some extent, Enzo Fernandez rose without trace, a four-week sensation at Qatar 2022. The nine-figure price tag was quite ridiculous but he is a fine player and an identikit, mainly defensive, Premier League midfielder.
But he can create and will create, the pass he lifted for Kai Havertz was a moment of ingenuity perfectly complemented by the German attacker’s cushioned finish. There is also a touch of devilment in Enzo and he was lucky to escape censure for a stamp on James Maddison ’s instep that might yet jeopardise the Leicester City midfielder’s participation in England’s Euro 2024 qualifying matches against Italy and Ukraine in a couple of weeks, assuming he is selected, of course.
And he should be selected – even in a losing cause, Maddison was excellent. He can surely look forward to the Chilwell treatment at a later date because it is getting harder and harder to see him being a Leicester player next season. One, the club needs the cash. Two, Maddison needs better team-mates around him for his brilliance to fully flourish.
This feels like a Leicester City treading water, at best. Any decent move put together by Chelsea felt like a serious threat to Danny Ward’s goal.
Brendan Rodgers’ team might actually have salvaged something from the contest had Kieran Dewsbury-Hall not scuffed a real sitter midway through the second half, but they always looked vulnerable.
And a move started by a beautiful Enzo pass cut open the Leicester defence and ended with Mateo Kovacic scissor-volleying the third.
This was the first time Chelsea scored three goals in a game since October 8 and only the second time they have scored three in the Premier League all season. The caveat is that it was against Leicester, who concede for fun, but it could have been more and a delighted Potter knew it.
Perhaps he is beginning to stamp his mark on the team and the club and he now has three inviting home Premier League fixtures in succession to nurture a relationship with the supporters.
It was those Chelsea supporters making themselves heard as the game meandered towards its conclusion, the home fans only breaking into voice to offer Lineker their support.
Whether or not he stayed to the end and joined in with the boos, I’m not sure, but he probably did (stayed, not booed, that is).
After all, thanks to the ludicrous and cowardly BBC, he had nothing else to do on Saturday night.
