QPR 0-0 Chelsea
Going into this game the big story was whether or not Anton Ferdinand would shake the hand of John Terry. Unsurprisingly Ferdinand not only refused to shake Terry's hand but also refused to shake the hand of Ashley Cole, due in part to Cole's defense of Terry and the follow up charge aimed at Anton's brother Rio over "Choc Ice Gate". This sadly was the biggest story from the game which turned into a rather torrid derby affair.
Following the refused handshakes the game struggled to get going as both teams niggled at each other repeatedly and it seemed as if the game was stopping every 2 or 3 minutes due to one foul or another. It was fair to say the fouls were the big story of the match with Chelsea struggling to keep all 11 men on the pitch as the game both Ramires and Ryan Bertrand flirted with being sent off.
Whilst Chelsea were lucky not to have had at least 1 man sent off QPR were lucky not to have had a penalty awarded against them as Chelsea twice had great appeals turned down in a fiery game that provided little in the terms of real quality despite the players on the pitch. Interestingly however the aggressiveness of the challenges did seem to somewhat neutralise Eden Hazard, who, up to now, had seemed to dominate games at will.
QPR were there with a job to do and they did it well, showing great concentration and defensive toughness to hold off Chelsea. Whilst the result will be a boost to their faltering start to the season, they really need to hope that they can build on it and that it wasn't a 1-off driven by emotion.
For Chelsea this was a bit of a kick in all honesty. They not only showed a lack of discipline that saw them picking up 2 bookings that should probably both have been red but also a lack of maturity under the pressure and media spot light. The points they dropped here maybe the first points they've dropped so far this season but are perhaps a reminder that they aren't an unbeatable force, despite the additions of Hazard who was remarkably quiet here.
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