Chelsea missed the chance to establish an eight-point lead over second-placed Manchester City following a hard-fought 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge tonight.
David Silva turned home Sergio Aguero's shot on the stroke of half time to cancel out Loic Remy's earlier opener as City remain five points adrift of Jose Mourinho's side.
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Chelsea made a lively start to the match and dominated the ball early on. City were unable to get out of their own half as they struggled to contain the hosts.
City finally got themselves a good spell of possession in the Chelsea half and it almost created a chance as Jesus Navas slid a pass down the right for Fernandinho, who tried to drill a shot across goal which deflected wide for a corner.
Aguero then looked to take on Kurt Zouma by running down the outside. The young defender, however, recovered well to make a fine challenge in the area, knocking the ball behind for a corner.
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The next chance came after Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic dwelled on the ball for too long in defence, allowing James Milner to steal possession from him before slipping a pass into Aguero. The striker was forced out onto his left foot, but still got a shot away which Thibaut Courtois saved.
An exciting couple of minutes then saw Oscar spurn a good opportunity for Chelsea before Aguero found himself one-on-one with Courtois. However, the Argentine's finish was weak and he dragged the ball wide of the post.
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City were made to pay for the missed chance as Remy slotted home from close range following good work from Eden Hazard.
Silva soon things up for City, toeing in Aguero's wayward shot after Courtois had flapped at a Navas cross.
After the break, Mourinho risked the wrath of the referee in a bizarre incident in which he kicked the ball at Milner.
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Back on the pitch, Fernandinho arrived late to meet a cross on the edge of the box, nodding it down into the ground. The ball bounced up and almost went over Courtois, who just about tipped it over the top.
It was an encouraging period for City, who had the better of the second half's opening exchanges. Milner was the next to come close as he looped a header towards goal that ended up on the roof of the net.
City continued to menace in Chelsea's danger zone, with the familiar presence of Frank Lampard, who received a warm reception upon coming on, adding to anxiety levels among the home fans.
Manuel Pellegrini's side finished the clash on top, with the impressive Milner drilling a shot narrowly wide of Courtois's goal late on in what proved the last chance of the top-of-the-table encounter.
Benjamin Topliss
