CARLOS BOCANEGRA rocked champions Chelsea with a late equaliser as Jose Mourinho's side fell six points behind Manchester United at the top of the Barclays Premiership. Moritz Volz gave Fulham a shock 17th-minute lead but Liam Rosenior put through his own net in the 35th minute when he deflected Frank Lampard's shot into the bottom corner.

Didier Drogba looked to have earned Chelsea a vital win in the 61st minute when he became the first Chelsea player in a decade to score 20 goals in a season, but Bocanegra stunned the home side with a close-range effort in the 84th minute.

Chelsea set about Fulham from the kick-off. Midfielder Michael Essien twice went close in the opening three minutes . . . sending one shot just wide of the target and forcing Antti Niemi into a fine save with his second effort moments later. Chelsea had dropped Ukraine striker Andriy Shevchenko to accommodate French veteran midfielder Claude Makelele, leaving just 19-goal Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou to provide the attacking edge.

In the 13th minute Essien turned provider with a powerful run down the right flank.

His cross into the six-yard box fell perfectly for Kalou but the Chelsea striker just failed to apply the finishing touch needed. Moments later, Geremi provided another cross for Kalou but this time the striker could not direct his header onto the target as Chelsea continued to storm forward in numbers.

But they paid for their wastefulness in the 17th minute when right-back Moritz Volz put Fulham in front with the 15,000th goal in Premiership history. And it would not have pleased Blues boss Jose Mourinho. Franck Queudrue's throw into the penalty area was dummied superbly by Tomasz Radzinski to leave Volz clear to unleash a right-foot volley into the net.

Volz's strike was the seventh goal Chelsea had conceded since captain John Terry had been sidelined with a back problem. The Chelsea captain, who underwent surgery on his back in midweek, is aiming to return for their Carling Cup semi-final first leg against Wycombe Wanderers on 10 January. It was clear they will need him back as soon as possible as Ricardo Carvalho and Paulo Ferreira struggled to cope with Fulham's vibrant forward movement.

Fulham should really have increased their lead in the 26th minute, but an unmarked Wayne Routledge fired over the bar from the edge of the penalty area to the dismay of boss Chris Coleman.

But Chelsea equalised in the 35th minute. Liam Rosenior failed to clear a long cross from Makelele, and Frank Lampard hammered the loose ball into the corner of the net via the legs of the unfortunate Fulham defender. The goal was later credited as an own goal to the Fulham player.

Lampard was determined to get Chelsea in front . . . and in the 40th minute he tried his luck from 25 yards only to watch his shot fizz a foot over the Fulham bar. Four minutes before the break, Fulham captain Michael Brown was penalised for bringing down Lampard, but the England midfielder's free-kick was deflected over the bar by Drogba.

Chelsea, for all their possession in the opening half, had struggled to break down a resolute Fulham defence.

At the opposite end, Chelsea looked short on confidence with Ferreira proving yet again that he is not a central defender. But with Khalid Boulahrouz suspended, Mourinho had little option but to play the right-back out of position.

He was caught out of position on numerous occasions in the opening half and Fulham were unlucky not to punish Chelsea's poor defending a second time when Brian McBride's header was pushed off the goal-line by Hilario in the 47th minute.

Mourinho, clearly fearing two more dropped home points over the festive period, opted to send on the out-ofsorts Ukrainian striker Shevchenko in place of fullback Geremi in the 57th minute. The change worked wonders as Drogba put the home side in front in the 61st minute. The Ivory Coast international headed Lampard's cross home from six yards after Fulham had failed to clear Ashley Cole's long punt into the area. It was his sixth goal in as many games.

But Fulham rocked Chelsea six minutes from time when Essien failed to clear a cross from Queudrue and after McBride's shot was superbly saved by Hilario, Bocanegra pounced to equalise from close range.