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Hull City 1-1 Chelsea
Match Reports, 21:47, February 2, 2010 ,
A game lacking in quality saw Chelsea held to a 1-1 draw against battling Hull City at the KC Stadium.
The first half started in a manner many hadn't expected before kick off, with Hull enjoying plenty of early possession and Chelsea looking shaky under sustained periods of pressure in and around their penalty area.
The opening minutes lacked any clear cut chances for both sides despite Hull's relative dominance, with the best opportunity falling to Nicolas Anelka after Boaz Myhill failed to get any distance on a punch from Frank Lampard's long range attempt.
Michael Ballack was guilty of missing a golden chance to put Chelsea a goal up midway through the half, as he powered a header directly at Myhill after good work on the wing from Branislav Ivanovic.
Hull continued to press forward and take the game to Chelsea and were rewarded for their efforts as Steven Mouyokolo headed home from a Stephen Hunt corner to hand the home side a deserved lead.
Predictably, Chelsea started to pile on the pressure after going behind and it was left to Didier Drogba, who looked rusty early on after his stint at the African Cup of Nations, to curl in a beauty of a free kick just before the break.
There was a hint of controversy about the free kick, with referee Mark Clattenburg pulling play back late for a foul on Anelka after he played the ball through to Lampard, who also seemed to be fouled but Chelsea, and Drogba, didn't care.
The second half started in much the same way as the first, with Hull enjoying a spell of possession and Chelsea content hitting them on the break. Myhill did well to save a couple of half-hearted attempts from Florent Malouda and Drogba but it was Hull who almost scored 20 minutes from the final whistle. Once again, it was Hunt and Mouyokolo who combined from a corner to great effect, with the former setting up the latter at the near post for another headed effort.
Chelsea could have snatched all three points in injury time but Myhill made a fantastic save from Daniel Sturridge's shot and ensured that Hull finished the game with a point they more than deserved.