Prices slashed to see Blues stalemate

THIS was the result that Antonio Conte dreaded.

Not only was the performance at Carrow Road poor, but there is now an added fixture to the demanding programme already facing his players.

The last thing he needed was another match to test the limits of a squad he already feels is understrength.

And what would have been cause for alarm was the way his men failed to impose themselves on a Norwich team mid-table in the Championship.

It is maybe a reflection of how the FA Cup is losing its allure as the Canaries cut ticket prices for the visit of the reigning Premier League champions.

There was time when such a mouth-watering prospect of the presence of such high-profile stars would be a New Year bonus for ticket touts. Not now.

The £25 entry was reduced by a tenner. A true sign of the times.

But the response from the Norfolk public was the one for which Norwich had planned, as a healthy 23,598 made their way to watch Conte’s stars.

Despite the absence of Eden Hazard and N’Golo Kante and the fact Alvaro Morata was on the bench, Conte was able to field a starting XI that featured nine internationals.

But, in the first 45 minutes, the guts and determination of Norwich was more evident than any technical superiority Chelsea might boast.

Their £33million Belgium striker Michy Batshuayi was given neither time nor space to operate by Grant Hanley and Christoph Zimmerman.

Canaries boss Daniel Farke had been shrewd in his tactics. You would not expect anything less from a disciple of Jurgen Klopp.

His side absorbed pressure, subdued any threat, then used the speed of Josh Murphy and Jamal Lewis on the break. It so nearly brought a goal when Murphy bamboozled Antonio Rudiger, but his nerve let him down.

David Luiz was back in the Chelsea team after six weeks’ absence and the rustiness told when his back pass to Willy Caballero was badly underhit and Alex Pritchard almost pounced.

Luiz’s timing in the tackle was also awry – as was shown when he was booked for a tackle on the impressive James Maddison.

Clearly, Conte had