Burnley thwart Chelsea but lead extends to 10 points
Premier League, Turf Moor – Burnley 1 (Brady 24) Chelsea 1 (Pedro 7)
Chelsea missed the opportunity to open up a 12-point gap at the Premier League summit as Burnley fought back to earn a 1-1 draw at Turf Moor.
Clarets record signing Robbie Brady capped a full home debut to remember with a stunning free kick to earn a share of the spoils after Pedro had opened the scoring early on with his ninth of the season.
The Blues had hoped to take full advantage of nearest rivals Tottenham's defeat at Liverpool on Saturday evening, but found it hard to keep Sean Dyche's spirited side quiet as the Lancashire outfit once again showed why they have one of the best home records in the topflight this term.
The result sees Burnley move 10 points clear of the drop zone in 12th position, while Chelsea's advantage at the summit could be cut to eight points if Manchester City win at Bournemouth on Monday night.
TALKING POINT
Two points dropped or a hard-fought draw for Chelsea? The fact Burnley were looking for an eighth straight home win in all competitions shows they are a force to be reckoned with on their own soil. They have taken 29 of their 30 points at Turf Moor and look certain to stay up. Much was made of how Chelsea could move 12 points clear at the top, but they created little after the break and Courtois made a crucial save at 1-1 from Lowton. Conte will take a draw that sees them 10 clear with just 13 matches to play. It gives the chasing pack a glimmer of hope, but Chelsea showed why they are so hard to beat here, and it's hard to see them dropping enough points for a team to dramatically overhaul them.
MAN OF THE MATCH
Michael Keane (Burnley): Illustrated why his reputation continues to rise. An ever present in the Premier Leaguer alongside Ben Mee this season, he dealt with everything Chelsea threw at him and kept Costa quiet.
PLAYER RATINGS
Burnley: Heaton 7, Lowton 7, Ward 7, Mee 7, Keane 8, Barton 7, Westwood 7, Boyd 7, Brady 8, Barnes 8, Gray 7. Subs: Arfield 6, Vokes n/a.
Chelsea: Courtois 8; Azpilicueta 7, David Luiz 7, Cahill 7; Moses 7, Kante 7, Matic 6, Alonso 6; Pedro 6, Diego Costa 6, Hazard 7. Subs: Fabregas 6, Willian 6, Batshuayi n/a.
KEY MOMENTS
7' - GOAL! Burnley 0-1 Chelsea. It's a lightning break as Hazard sprays it wide for Moses. The wing back marauds towards the box and lays it across for Pedro to take it in his stride and fire low past Heaton.
18' - BURNLEY CHANCE! Barnes exchanges a neat one two with Boyd before lashing a shot on the stretch wide from 22 yards out.
24' - GOAL! Burnley 1-1 Chelsea. Robbie Brady, the Clarets' record signing, steps up to curve a superb left foot free kick into the top corner.
36' - BURNLEY CHANCE! Barton plays Lowton in on the right of the area. He holds off a challenge but sees his low effort blocked by the onrushing Courtois. Super stop from the Chelsea keeper.
48' - BURNLEY CHANCE! Big chance for Burnley. The hosts clear a dangerous cross form Hazard and surge clear. Luiz inexplicably leaves a ball towards Gray who fires a tame shot towards the near corner that Courtois gets down to easily save.
85' - CHELSEA CHANCE! Neat approach play from Kante, Costa and Fabregas ends with Pedro curling a first time attempt from the left of the area way over.
KEY STATS
Burnley are unbeaten in their last six Premier League home matches, their longest such streak in the top flight since a run of six between April-September 1975.
Burnley have never won a Premier League encounter against Chelsea, losing four of six attempts (D2).
Robbie Brady is the first player to score a direct free-kick vs Chelsea in the PL since Rickie Lambert in March 2013.
Pedro has now scored nine times in all competitions for Chelsea this season, surpassing his total of eight in 2015/16.
Burnley won a point from a losing position in the PL for the first time since the 1-1 draw at Chelsea on 21 February 2015.
Chelsea failed to register a single shot on goal in the second half of a PL match for the first time since 1 March 2016, the 2-1 win at Norwich City.
MATCH IN A TWEET
Related Topics
Share this article