Cottagers and Blues draw West London Derby

Chelsea dropped valuable points at home in their Championship quest, as they were held by West London neighbours, Fulham. The Blues started brightly on two minutes, as Salamon Kalou’s approach play opened up the Cottagers, and Michael Essien’s sliding shot went narrowly wide of Antti Niemi’s right hand post. A minute later, Essien went close again, as his long range shot was palmed away by Niemi, after Didier Drogba had calved open the Fulham defence. Against the run of play, a mistake by Geremi was pounced upon by Moritz Volz, who shot the ball through Paulo Ferreira’s legs, and past Henrique Hilario, into the centre of the net, to give Fulham the lead in the West London Derby, on seventeen minutes. Wayne Routledge wasted a golden opportunity to increase the Fulham advantage, as he side footed over the crossbar, with a clear sight of goal, five minutes later. But the Blues pressure finally paid off, as club captain, Frank Lampard fired a low fierce shot from outside the penalty box, and with a kindly deflection off Liam Rosenior, the ball nestled into the bottom left hand corner, ten minutes before half time. Two minutes after the break, a point blank one handed save by Hilario, kept out Brian McBride’s deflected header off Geremi, as Chelsea had a lucky escape. With sixty one minutes on the clock, Didier Drogba, headed home from close range, as the inform Chelsea striker, latched onto Lampard’s pin point accurate cross, to put the Blues in front. Hilario fumbled Franck Queudrue’s cross, and Routledge miss cued at an open goal, as Carvalho came to Chelsea’s rescue, as a rear guard defender on the right hand post, on seventy six minutes. A reflex save by Hilario on the left side of the penalty box, denied Routledge from scoring, two minutes later. But the Cottagers drew level on eighty three minutes, as Queudrue’s cross deceived the Chelsea defence, and as Hilario spilled the ball, Carlos Bocanegra, pounced at close range, to punish the Blues lack in concentration.