London: Chelsea missed the chance to extend its lead to seven points in the Premier League on Saturday when they were held to a scoreless draw at Birmingham.
Chelsea failed to capitalise on a handful of second-half chances, and have won only one of their past five league matches — that with a late penalty against last-place Portsmouth.
"It is not a good result for us," Chelsea coach Carlo Ancelotti said. "We are disappointed with the result but not for the performance of the team. We played well."
The Blues lead defending champion Manchester United by five points. Manchester City beat Stoke 2-0 to close on fifth-place Tottenham, who drew 0-0 at Fulham. West Ham beat Portsmouth 2-0 to climb out of the relegation zone.
United play Hull on Sunday, while third-place Arsenal host fourth-place Aston Villa.
Birmingham had the chance to take a halftime lead against Chelsea, but striker Christian Benitez was called for a contentious offside and then had a goal ruled out by the same linesman.
Chelsea's best scoring chance came at the end of the first half when central defender Alex smashed a 35-yard free kick against the post.
Nicolas Anelka was out with an injury, and Chelsea's attacking options for Monday's game against Fulham were further reduced when Florent Malouda was sent off for a second yellow card late in the game. The France international will be suspended.
Martin Petrov and Carlos Tevez scored first-half goals to give Roberto Mancini a win in his debut as Manchester City manager. City has 32 points, two fewer than Tottenham.
Mark Schwarzer earned Fulham a point with a late double save, stopping Peter Crouch's long-range volley and blocking Jermaine Jenas's effort on the rebound, but Tottenham's Heurelho Gomes was the busier goalkeeper at Craven Cottage.
Fulham had the better chances all game and the Brazilian 'keeper was forced into two stellar second-half stops by Bobby Zamora, one of three former Tottenham players in the Fulham lineup.
United States international Clint Dempsey had earlier shot wide, hit a 25-yard free kick against the bar and almost set up a chance for Fulham with a back-heel flick toward goal.
Damien Duff almost won it for Fulham when he shot wide with two minutes left.
"In terms of clear-cut goal chances I'd say we deserved to win that," Fulham manager Roy Hodgson said. "Their goalkeeper made two or three very good saves."
West Ham won for the first time in five games through a first-half penalty by Alessandro Diamante and a late goal by Radoslav Kovac.
Hull and Bolton, which drew 1-1 at Burnley, join Portsmouth in the relegation zone.
"It was a fantastic win, a massive one," West Ham manager Gianfranco Zola said. "I rated this as a six-point game. It was so important for the table and for morale."
Marouane Fellaini scored five minutes from the end to give Everton a 1-1 draw at Sunderland, which had led since the 17th minute on Darren Bent's goal.
Wigan drew 1-1 with Blackburn, while Liverpool beat 10-man Wolverhampton 2-0.
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