Penalty agony twice over for Fulham as Chelsea prevail

IT COULD have gone either way – though in the end it began to look as if not even penalties might separate them.

But of course they did. And it was Chelsea who ended up the last man standing – Bryan Ruiz crashing Fulham's fifth spot-kick onto the underside of the crossbar after both Frank Lampard and Moussa Dembele had had their shots saved.

That Ruiz mishap carried echoes of Fulham's best chance in normal time - Pajtim Kasami having also thumped a 47 ^th minute penalty against the bar.

The Whites will also feel they should have cashed in on Alex receiving a red card in giving away that penalty, but somehow the 10 men of Chelsea were never overrun.

This gruelling but absorbing west London derby at the Bridge was full of unrelenting pace and spurned opportunities – a miniature version of Chelsea's visit to Old Trafford perhaps. It was certainly proof that even two hours of goalless football can be fairly watchable.

The absence of goals in normal time was not for the want of trying as both teams went all out to avoid extra time, but in the end, weariness got the better of the contest.

Andre Villas-Boas may have intended to use the Carling Cup as a work out for fringe players, but ended up calling upon his older brigade sooner than he would have liked.

Lampard was hauled off the bench when Daniel Sturridge had to come off with a leg injury in the dying moments of the first half and two minutes into the second half, Josh McEachran had to make way for John Terry when Alex was given his marching orders.

If Fulham wasted that golden opportunity to get in front, they remained upbeat about their chances of ending a decades-long search for a win at the Bridge.

Without carving Chelsea apart, they made possession a priority and had the home side chasing shadows at times.

Attacking then old Shed End, where their fans were massed, they almost stole in front when Matt Briggs nutmegged Salomon Kalou to reach the byline and sub keeper Ross Turnbull did superbly to flick out a hand to stop the ball ricocheting home off Terry's head.

More chances followed as Dembele – later joined by Bobby Zamora off the bench - forced Turnbull into another save and Chris Baird almost converted at a corner.

The chances seemed to be coming thick and fast in the final quarter – Romelu Lukaku's close-range header somehow kept out by Mark Schwarzer. But it was destined to remain goalless.

The team sheets and empty seats testified to the relatively low-key nature of the fixture, but both sides had much to gain from the meeting – fringe players given a rare chance to shine, while Fulham fans in particular were keen to give their bitterest rivals a metaphorical bloody nose.

Villas-Boas gave first starts to summer recruits Oriol Romeu and Lukaku, with defender Ryan Bertrand also making his bow.

Fulham boss Martin Jol has been loathe to send out weakened sides in Europa League games, but this time followed suit, offering Orlando Sa and Kerim Frei – not even mentioned in the Chelsea programme – a turn in the spotlight.

Chelsea looked more threatening at the outset. Lukaku almost announced his arrival on the scene with a goal midway through the first half, dispossessing Briggs before unleashing a low shot that Schwarzer did well to block.

Kalou was inches wide with a follow-up in the same attack and McEachran had the ball in the net, only for a linesman to judge that an offside Sturridge had got a touch to help the ball on its way.

But it it was never going to be a night of one-way traffic.

The lively Frei caused consternation with his pace before the night wore him down - one great run to the heart of the home defence almost brought reward, only for Alex to intervene – legally on this occasion - as the Swiss wing back was about to pull the trigger.

He was also the man who induced the foul from Alex which resulted in the penalty at the start of the second half. Briggs played a ball up to Ruiz that the Costa Rican shielded well before laying off to Frei, but Alex's tackle denied Fulham a goal.

CHELSEA: Cech (Turnbull h/t); Ferreira, Alex, Luiz, Bertrand; Romeu, McEachran (Terry 52); Sturridge (Lampard 44), Malouda, Kalou; Lukaku. Subs not used: Mata, Drogba, Mikel, Bosingwa.

FULHAM: Schwarzer; Kelly, Grygera, Senderos, Briggs; Kasami (Zamora 78), Gecov (Sidwell 90), Baird, Frei; Sa (Dembele 54), Ruiz.Subs not used: Etheridge, JA Riise, Kacaniklic, Halliche.

Attendance: 37,632