Chelsea returned to the top four of the Premier League on Sunday after edging past struggling Leicester City 1-0 thanks to a 60th-minute goal from Spanish defender Marc Cucurella.

The home side, who have lost momentum since the turn of the year due to injuries to their top striker, made the most of their victory in the warm London sunshine.

Coach Enzo Maresca, who left Leicester for Chelsea last year, celebrated at the final whistle and told reporters it was because his players had shown flexibility and hard work to break down Leicester's unusual five-man back formation.

Cole Palmer's first-half penalty was brilliantly saved by the Danish goalkeeper. It was the first Premier League penalty miss for the out-of-form Chelsea striker, who has now gone seven league games without scoring.

Maresca said Palmer had not trained for the last two days due to illness but was keen to play on Sunday. He was substituted in the 73rd minute.

Chelsea had dominated possession but were toothless before Enzo Fernández squared for the onrushing Cucurella, who curled an angled shot past the diving Mads Hermansen.

"I think Enzo passed me the ball and I see that I have the option to shoot. Normally I wouldn't but I tried. We got the three points and we want to fight for the objectives," Cucurella told Sky Sports. "I'm really happy."

Ruud van Nistelrooy's Leicester, deep in the relegation zone, looked dangerous on the counter, with Moroccan midfielder Bilal El Khannouss and Jamie Vardy linking up effectively without finding the killer shot.

Chelsea leapfrogged Manchester City, who lost at Nottingham Forest on Saturday, into fourth place on 49 points, two behind third-placed Forest and 21 behind leaders Liverpool.

Ahead of a trip to second-placed Arsenal next weekend, the London outfit are at home to Copenhagen in the Europa League on Thursday, holding a 2-1 lead from the first leg.