Chelsea and Fulham drew 0-0 on Friday. Despite the scoreline, the West London Derby would prove to be quite an entertaining match. However, Chelsea’s disappointing home draw prevented them from making any major moves up the Premier League table.
Much of the pre-game talk centered around Chelsea’s record transfer spend. The Blues have net spending of almost $600m this season, which included massive deals for Enzo Fernandez, a Premier League record fee and Mykhailo Mudryk. The dynamic duo cost around $233 million combined. Both stars would get their first starts for the club on Friday.
The first half hour of the game was pretty even. Although Chelsea had significantly more possession during the time period, Fulham had the most shots and the best chance to score. Andreas Pereira was the closest to scoring in the first third of the game with an excellent shot from distance. Kepa Arrizabalaga, however, made a dive stop to his right.
Havertz hits the post a minute before halftime
Kai Havertz then hit the post moments before the halftime break. The center forward slipped past the Fulham defense and fired a shot past Bernd Leno. Although the German seemed offside at first, the assistant made the call to keep his flag down. However, the visitors cleared the ball and the game went goalless at half-time.
Chelsea entered the match with just three goals in their last six games overall. Despite the newcomers, the hosts still struggled to produce firepower going forward. In fact, Chelsea managed just seven touches inside the Fulham penalty area in the first 65 minutes of the game. They also recorded just one shot on goal in the first 75 minutes.
Ream saves Fulham’s draw at Chelsea
David Datro Fofana, another new signing for the Blues, almost put his team ahead on 79′. Leno left the goal open after running out and Fofana finished off into the open goal. However, USMNT defender Tim Ream cleverly punted the ball to keep the score level.
The tie means Chelsea overtake Liverpool to ninth in the table. But the Blues have played two more games than the Merseyside club. The point for the visitors also moves them past Brighton to sixth in the table. However, Fulham have already played three more games than the seventh-placed Seagulls.
PHOTO: IMAGO / Sportimage
