AFC Bournemouth 0-0 Chelsea: Blues dealt Liam Delap injury blow in goalless draw | OneFootball

Chelsea shared the points with Bournemouth on a cold afternoon at the Vitality Stadium in an uneventful match in the Premier League.

The opening minutes produced the most action of the match, when Antoine Semenyo appeared to have put the hosts ahead.

However, an offside call against Evanilson, which was confirmed by VAR, saw Chelsea's blushes spared.

The offside flag saved Chelsea once again in the first half after Michael Oliver awarded the hosts a penalty, but Marcus Tavernier, who was empeded, was deemed to be offside.

Liam Delap was forced off for the Blues in the first half with what appeared to be a dislocated shoulder.

The point sees Chelsea fall to fourth in the Premier League table, five points behind Aston Villa in fifth place as the Blues were unable to make a full recovery after their 3-1 defeat to Leeds in midweek.

Alejandro Garnacho came closest, hitting the post in the second half. | IMAGO / Pro Sports Images

It was the hosts who got off to the better start of the two sides, with Andoni Iraola's men putting the pressure on Chelsea in the opening minutes.

Antoine Semenyo thought that he had put his side ahead after just three minutes but a lenghty VAR check showed that Evanilson was offside in the build-up to the goal.

Reece James did well to play the Brazilian offside by a matter of inches, with the decision confirmed by VAR after a lengthy check.

Just moments later, Chelsea were saved by the offside flag once again. This time, referee Oliver pointed to the penalty spot following a challenge by James on Tavernier.

A quick glance to his assistant showed that the Bournemouth midfielder was offside, saving James' blushes and giving Chelsea yet another wake-up call.

With things failing to improve in attack, Delap was forced off with a dislocated shoulder following a tussle with Marcos Senesi in the Chelsea box, which resulted in the England striker being replaced by Marc Guiu.

Bournemouth wasted a golden opportunity just minutes before the end of the first half, with Robert Sanchez pushing a Semenyo shot into the path of Evanilson, who fired wide from just yards out.

Liam Delap was forced off in the first half. | IMAGO / Colorsport

The Blues came out better in the second half, with Pedro Neto registering Chelsea's first shot on target in the 49th minute.

Then, Neto produced a fine cross to find Alejandro Garnacho arriving late towards the far post. The Argentine's header hit the post before falling back to Bournemouth, with Chelsea looking to open the scoring.

With Cole Palmer replaced on the hour mark, Joao Pedro was introduced as Maresca looked for a winner.

Garnacho came close once again, picking the ball up on the left before cutting inside to fire a strike just wide from outside of the box.

Despite their best efforts, Chelsea had to settle for a point at the Vitality as they sit fourth in the Premier League table.