No singing in the rain ... Chelsea players contemplate two dropped points in title race. Source: AFP
Chelsea endured a frustrating end to a controversial week as they failed to reclaim top spot in the Barclays Premier League after Pablo Hernandez earned Swansea City a 1-1 draw with an 88th-minute equaliser.
Victor Moses gave Chelsea the lead in the 61st minute at the Liberty Stadium when Oscar's pinpoint set-piece was headed goalwards by Gary Cahill and the former Wigan midfielder, inside the six-yard area, executed a sublime headed flick which flew in off the underside of the crossbar.
But Hernandez struck late after exchanging passes with substitute Itay Schechter before driving a low shot into the bottom-right corner which escaped Petr Cech's reach.
Chelsea have now claimed just one point from their last two league matches after defeat by Manchester United last weekend.
They now trail new leaders United by a point following the Red Devils' 2-1 win against Arsenal at Old Trafford.
| P | W | D | L | GD | Pts | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Man United | 10 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 12 | 24 |
| 2 | Chelsea | 10 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 12 | 23 |
| 3 | Man City | 10 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 9 | 22 |
| 4 | Everton | 10 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 17 |
| 5 | Tottenham | 10 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 17 |
| 6 | Arsenal | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 15 |
| 7 | Fulham | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 15 |
| 8 | West Ham | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 15 |
| 9 | West Brom | 9 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 14 |
| 10 | Newcastle | 9 | 3 | 4 | 2 | -2 | 13 |
| 11 | Swansea | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 12 |
| 12 | Wigan | 10 | 3 | 2 | 5 | -5 | 11 |
| 13 | Liverpool | 9 | 2 | 4 | 3 | -2 | 10 |
| 14 | Norwich | 10 | 2 | 4 | 4 | -10 | 10 |
| 15 | Stoke | 10 | 1 | 6 | 3 | -2 | 9 |
| 16 | Sunderland | 9 | 1 | 6 | 2 | -3 | 9 |
| 17 | Aston Villa | 10 | 2 | 3 | 5 | -6 | 9 |
| 18 | Reading | 8 | 0 | 4 | 4 | -6 | 4 |
| 19 | Southampton | 9 | 1 | 1 | 7 | -12 | 4 |
| 20 | QPR | 9 | 0 | 3 | 6 | -11 | 3 |
Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo felt the performance of referee Kevin Friend justified his faith in match officials.
The European champions are currently at the heart of a storm after accusing Mark Clattenburg of racially abusing John Obi Mikel.
And it had been reported Di Matteo was worried the case would see Chelsea suffer at the hands of match officials.
"I always said I don't fear that. I have faith in the officials. Today was a very good performance by them," he said.
"I thought (today's referee) was terrific. The referee had a fantastic game today and let the game play. I told him after the game."
It's certainly been a busy week for Chelsea following the controversial defeat by United, when the accusation against Clattenburg took place, before gaining revenge against Sir Alex Ferguson's team after extra time in the Capital One Cup and now the trip to Wales. A home game against Shahktar Donetsk in the UEFA Champions League now awaits.
"Mentally and physically it has been very demanding, playing two games against Manchester United and also the extra time," said Di Matteo.
"But the players responded with a lot of commitment today and we nearly won.
"It is a disappointment we weren't able to finish the game off.''
No comments:
Post a Comment