Hull City hold Chelsea to 2-2 draw at Stamford Bridge as Mohamed Belloumi scores twice

Four goals split points at Stamford Bridge

Hull City held Chelsea to a 2-2 draw at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, ending the promoted side's clean sheet record while exposing ongoing defensive vulnerabilities for the home team. Chelsea opened the scoring in the seventh minute when Cole Palmer fed Joao Pedro, who shifted the ball to Morgan Rogers on the left wing. Rogers moved past defender Regan Slater before driving a low left-footed shot inside the near post of goalkeeper Konstantinos Tzolakis. Hull responded in the 28th minute as Ryan Giles sent a cross toward the far post, where Malo Gusto hesitated and Jorrel Hato misjudged the bounce, allowing Mohamed Belloumi to volley in his first Premier League goal. Six minutes later, Hull went ahead after goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez failed to claim a corner, Semi Ajayi headed against the crossbar, and Oli McBurnie set up Belloumi for a strike that deflected off Levi Colwill into the net. Chelsea secured a point in the 66th minute when Joao Pedro met a cross from Palmer and finished into the top corner, while a later free kick from Reece James struck the post.

Defensive issues persist for Alonso's side

The result extended Chelsea's sequence of conceding goals to 20 consecutive Premier League fixtures. Under manager Xabi Alonso, Chelsea have scored 18 goals and conceded 12 across six matches in all competitions, including 16 scored and 12 conceded in five matches against top-flight opposition. Alonso's side has taken the lead in five of their six fixtures this season, with only third-tier Luton Town in the League Cup failing to score against them. The draw also extended Chelsea's winless run in home matches against promoted sides to five games. For Hull, managed by Sergej Jakirovic, the two goals conceded were their first of the league campaign after opening the season with three consecutive clean sheets, with defender John Egan completing 90 minutes after receiving a 50th-minute booking.

League standings and title race implications

The outcome placed Hull in third position in the Premier League table on eight points, with Chelsea trailing in fourth on seven points. Defending champions Arsenal and Manchester City both lead the standings with nine points each prior to their weekend fixtures against Sunderland and Manchester United. Brentford climbed to six points following a third consecutive draw, while Bournemouth remained on three points after dropping points from a winning position for the fourth time in four matches under Marco Rose. Liverpool rose to sixth place following their afternoon fixture, leaving them within striking distance of the top four before the evening matches.

Draws and upsets across the Saturday slate

Elsewhere on Saturday, Liverpool were held to a 0-0 draw at Anfield by Fulham, who earned their first point of the campaign under manager Alvaro Arbeloa. Liverpool started an attack featuring Bradley Barcola, Florian Wirtz, and Alexander Isak, but Fulham created clear opportunities through Gonzalo Garcia and Josh King, whose late effort required a save from Alisson Becker. At the Vitality Stadium, Brentford secured a 2-2 draw against Bournemouth when Kevin Schade scored his second goal of the match into an unguarded net following a passing error by goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic. Earlier, Justin Kluivert and Marcus Tavernier had overturned Schade's opening goal for Bournemouth, who also saw Ben Gannon-Doak hit the woodwork in stoppage time. At Villa Park, Nottingham Forest defeated Aston Villa 2-1 with a goal from Igor Jesus, leaving Villa winless in the relegation zone.