England, Jan 31: Chelsea squandered a two-goal lead with three minutes remaining to draw 2-2 at Reading on Wednesday, virtually ending its English Premier League title hopes and piling more misery on under-fire manager Rafa Benitez.
The European champions looked certain to win after goals by Frank Lampard and Juan Mata either side of halftime, but Adam Le Fondre scored in the 87th minute and grabbed the equalizer in the fifth minute of stoppage time.
Chelsea is 12 points behind league leader Manchester United in third with 14 games remaining, and Benitez will surely come in for more criticism with the team winning only one of its last five matches in all competitions.
The point lifted Reading out of the relegation zone on goal difference ahead of Wigan.
