A London Derby between Chelsea and Arsenal always spells controversy and this one was no different as the two battled it out in a hard-fought, feisty affair. Penalty shouts left and right for both sides came to no avail as it finished 0-0 at the Emirates, with Chelsea probably being the happier of the two sides.

It was a hostile affair for Cesc Fábregas, the former Arsenal midfielder returning to The Emirates for the first time since 2011. The first penalty shout of the afternoon came just 8 minutes in as Oscar appeared to be brought down by Nacho Monreal but referee Michael Oliver waved away the protests.

The biggest moment of the match occurred on a quarter of an hour as Fábregas lofted a beautiful ball over the top to Oscar, the Brazilian lifting the ball over David Ospina before being clattered into. A blatant penalty, in the eyes of most pundits, not given but the scariest part of the action was the apparent concussion for Oscar, quite clear to everyone watching around the world.

The third penalty claim for Jose Mourinho's side came in the 25th minute as Fabregas was clipped by a lazy leg from Santi Cazorla but Michael Oliver chose to book the former Arsenal man for simulation. Overall, the referee seemed to get two of the three decisions correctly. Arsenal's penalty shout was just 10 minutes after Chelsea's third when Cazorla's effort struck the arm of Gary Cahill but again, the referee ignored the protests. The clearest chance of the first half fell to Ramires just before the interval but his shot from six yards out was comfortably saved.

Half Time: Arsenal 0-0 Chelsea: A very lively first-half with lots of talking points remained goal-less, somehow.

The 2nd half lacked the controversy of its predecessor but still contained the high intensity. During the break, Oscar did come off due to his alleged concussion and was replaced by Didier Drogba who added a new dimension to Chelsea's game. The match did let up after an hour as neither team could find a clear cut chance at goal. As Arsenal began to take control of the game, John Terry put his body all over the place to keep the London rivals out, earning himself a probable Man of the Match. The best chance of the game came with seconds to play as a low driven cross fell to the feet of both Mesut Özil and Danny Welbeck but neither could capitalise from close range.

Full Time: Arsenal 0-0 Chelsea: The Blues are six points away from their 4th title while Arsenal slip to third in the table.

Arsenal (0) (0)
Ospina 6 Courtois 6
Bellerín 7 Ivanovic 6
Mertesacker 6 Cahill 6
Koscielny 6 Terry 8
Monreal 6 Azpilicueta 8
Coquelin 7 Matic 6
Cazorla 6 Fabregas 5
Sanchez 5 Ramires 6
Ramsey 7 Hazard 6
Ozil 6 Willian 7
Giroud 5 Oscar 6
Subs
Welbeck 5 Drogba 5
Walcott - Zouma -
Cuadrado -
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About the author
Harry  Harris
Covering the Premier League, Bundesliga and NFL. Writing for VAVEL since May 2014. Chelsea FC and Atlanta sports.