IT’S a conundrum that even Jeff Stelling might have to pause for breath to ponder. Is it a sigh of relief that Chelsea also dropped two home points that were theirs for the taking?

Should it be seen as an encouraging sign that they can also fail miserably to break down inferior opposition?

Or does it make Saturday’s result more painful to bear for Liverpool? The fact that they failed to capitalise on what has to be assumed to be a rare Stamford Bridge blip and open up a two-point lead at the top?

It’s a difficult one but there’s only one certain answer – it’s far too early for all that tit-for-tat stuff. Liverpool need to address their own shortcomings and not worry about anyone else’s.

The fact is, 0-0 at home to Fulham is a bad result regardless of anything else, including the failure of Manchester United to shorten the eight-point gap that separated them from the top two at the start of Saturday.

It’s got nothing to do with lost ground in November because there will be far more twists and turns in the next six months without getting all tangled up in the table at this stage.

There is one column that does, however, have some significance when assessing the possible impact of Liverpool’s continued lack of conviction when trying to break down stubborn opponents on their own turf – goal difference.

It’s already worth an extra point to Chelsea and is what is keeping them top week after week. It might not be vital at this stage but it is a good indicator of the title pedigree of the current frontrunners.

The leaders average a two-goal difference for every game. Liverpool’s is less than one.