Chelsea missed a chance to take top spot in English soccer’s Premier League after being held to a 0-0 draw by Everton today. Chelsea played for 55 minutes with 10 men at Goodison Park after captain John Terry was shown a red card by referee Phil Dowd for a tackle on Leon Osman. The draw ended Chelsea’s record run of 12 straight away wins in the league.
“They were in a positive mood, the crowd was right behind them and it’s a tough place to come when you play with 11 men,” Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech told Setanta Sports. “We can be satisfied with the point.”
Chelsea, on 38 points, trails first-place Liverpool by one point. Aston Villa has 34, Manchester United, which has played two fewer matches, is on 32 points with Arsenal one point back. Everton, on 26 points, remains in seventh.
Terry’s 35th-minute lunge at Osman swung the momentum Everton’s way as Chelsea coach Luiz Felipe Scolari adjusted his lineup, moving John Mikel Obi from center midfield to the middle of defense.
At the beginning of the second half he brought on striker Didier Drogba for Nicolas Anelka and Serbian defender Branislav Ivanovic for Joe Cole. That allowed Mikel Obi to rejoin a four- man midfield in the England winger’s position and Deco to switch to the left side of the field outside Frank Lampard and Michael Ballack.
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