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Spurs Nick Point At Bridge (Sky Sports)
Chelsea 1 Tottenham Hotspur 1
Tottenham
Hotspur claimed a first point of the season to end Chelsea's 100 per cent
start to the campaign after a 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge.
Juliano Belletti's goal had
given the hosts a deserved lead, only for Spurs' dogged determination to be
rewarded with Darren Bent's equaliser.
The Blues dominated the
first half with Frank Lampard's clever chip pushed over by Heurelho Gomes
before Nicolas Anelka wasted a gilt-edged opportunity.
But Chelsea took the lead
in fortunate circumstances on 27 minutes when Bent failed to clear Deco's
corner and the ball ricocheted off Belletti and beyond Gomes.
There was an element of
good luck about Spurs' equaliser on the stroke of half-time when the ball
broke kindly into Bent's path and he finished coolly past Petr Cech.
Spurs, minus Dimitar
Berbatov, largely kept Chelsea at arm's length in the second half as neither
keeper was seriously tested.
Furious start
Amid the furious start,
Lampard forced an early save from Gomes after latching onto a Joe Cole
flick. Lampard's chip was floated perfectly to dip under Gomes' crossbar but
the Brazilian goalkeeper was able to get back and tip it over.
Deco, who picked up an
early booking, drilled in a corner that caused confusion midway through the
half and Anelka's shot was blocked bravely by Ledley King when the ball
broke.
Belletti, thriving in his
new role as the midfield anchor man, then sent Anelka through with a lofted
pass and the France striker blasted over.
Chelsea were getting
closer, with Michael Essien then rattling Gomes' crossbar with a swerving
drive from 25 yards before the hosts' pressure paid off with the opener from
the resulting corner.
Deco swung in the
set-piece, Bent took a swing and missed, and the ball hit Belletti before
flying past the helpless Gomes.
Good value
It was his first goal since
netting in the same fixture last season - he usually deals in long-range
efforts but this one was scrappy.
Looking good value for
their lead, Chelsea conceded on the stroke of half-time. Lampard had
challenged Luka Modric and the ball ran to Bent, who slotted under Cech.
The leveller was totally
against the run of play, and the omens were not good for Spurs at the start
of the second period as they lost the ball straight from kick-off.
Ashley Cole was raiding
down the left on Scolari's instruction, and Lampard sent him through to fire
across the face of the goal.
Ramos' response was to take
off Giovani dos Santos and unleash the pace of Aaron Lennon on the right
flank. Tom Huddlestone was also brought on to beef up the midfield, with
Chris Gunter coming off.
Jermaine Jenas moved to
right-back as Spurs sat back looking for their point, eventually holding out
despite a frantic finish.
Chelsea |
Team Statistics |
Tottenham Hotspur |
1 |
Goals |
1 |
1 |
1st Half Goals |
1 |
2 |
Shots on Target |
1 |
10 |
Shots off Target |
0 |
4 |
Blocked Shots |
4 |
5 |
Corners |
8 |
10 |
Fouls |
13 |
2 |
Offsides |
2 |
3 |
Yellow Cards |
0 |
0 |
Red Cards |
0 |
83.7 |
Passing Success |
79.6 |
15 |
Tackles |
23 |
73.3 |
Tackles Success |
69.6 |
60.1 |
Possession |
39.9 |
50.2 |
Territorial Advantage |
49.8 |
Teams
Chelsea
Cech, Carvalho, A. Cole, Bosingwa,
Belletti (Kalou 76), Terry, Deco, Essien, Lampard, J. Cole (Malouda 66),
Anelka (Di Santo 89)
Subs Not Used
Cudicini, Alex, Bridge, Ferreira
Booked
Deco,
J.Cole, Bosingwa
Goals
Belletti 27
Tottenham Hotspur
Gomes, Woodgate, Gunter (Huddlestone 63), King,
Giovanni (Lennon 59), Jenas, Zokora, Bale, Bentley (O’Hara 72), Modric, Bent
Subs Not Used
Assou-Ekotto, Cesar, Dawson, Gilberto
Booked
Goals
Bent 45
Attendance 41,790
Referee
H. Webb