Chelsea hold Arsenal to goalless draw

Arsenal failed to reclaim top spot in the Premier League as they played out a dreadful stalemate with Chelsea at Emirates Stadium.

The result means Liverpool will top the table at Christmas - ahead of the Gunners on goal difference - as two teams with title pretensions of their own produced a spectacle almost devoid of entertainment and quality.

Frank Lampard came closest to breaking the deadlock when he hit the woodwork in the first half, while Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud wasted two good opportunities late on to claim the win that would have seen the Gunners leapfrog Liverpool.

The first real chance came after 32 minutes, when a delicate Eden Hazard chip found Frank Lampard at the far post. He met it with a controlled volley which beat a rooted Wojciech Szczesny, but the ball crashed against the underside of the bar and bounced out.

Arsenal claimed a penalty shortly after as Theo Walcott went down under a challenge from Willian, but referee Mike Dean turned the appeals down.

Chelsea then almost took the lead after Aaron Ramsey's errant pass made its way to Hazard, who slid in Willian, but his shot was weak and Szczesny dealt with it easily.

Arsenal had two key chances in the closing stages, both to Olivier Giroud. The first came after a delightful dinked ball from Ramsey, which the Frenchman ran onto, but his shot skewed to the left of the goal.

The second came five minutes from time as Kieran Gibbs crossed low from the left and found Giroud but his effort was blocked by a combination of Petr Cech and John Terry. Cesar Azpilicueta then cleared a Bacary Sagna header off the line in the final few minutes as Chelsea got the draw they came for.