Chelsea saw their hopes of retaining the Premiership title all but snuffed out as they were held to a costly 2-2 draw by Bolton Wanderers.
Kevin Davies' 53rd-minute equaliser, combined with Manchester United's stirring victory at Everton, left Jose Mourinho's side five points adrift of the league leaders with just three matches remaining.
The west Londoners must now pin their hopes on a miracle turn-around in the season's final weeks, but a resigned air had settled over Stamford Bridge long before the final whistle blew.
Chelsea's hopes had been perked when Salomon Kalou's header and Jussi Jaaskelainen's own goal had put them in front after Lubomir Michalik's opener, but Davies' goal punctured their optimism and put the champagne on ice in Manchester.
Chelsea have made light of their heavy work-load this season, but with the second leg of their Champions League semi-final looming large on Tuesday, Mourinho deemed this a game too far for a clutch of his star names.
The Portuguese made six changes to the team which had brushed aside Liverpool three days earlier, dropping Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard and Joe Cole to the bench and omitting Ashley Cole, Paolo Ferreira and Claude Makelele entirely.
It was a gamble, albeit a calculated one. Chelsea's run-in is daunting and this looked the least treacherous of their remaining fixtures.
But there was a price to pay. They appeared confused and indecisive in the opening stages, content on smashing hopeful punts towards the isolated Andriy Shevchenko.
Chelsea displayed an unusual laxness in defending Andranik Teymourian's 18th-minute free-kick, which picked out the unmarked Abdoulaye Meite.
The Ivory Coast defender's downward header was blocked by Kalou and Michalik thumped in the loose ball.
But Mourinho's side have a hardy constitution and falling behind provided a peculiar pick-me-up.
Within three minutes, Wayne Bridge had torn forward and delivered an enticing in-swinging cross which Kalou, nipping in front of Michalik, nodded into the far corner.
Suddenly, Chelsea found their rhythm. Jaaskelainen was forced into an impressive save from Shevchenko but Chelsea were not to be denied.
In the 33rd minute, Lampard - on for the injured Ricardo Carvalho - drifted over a corner which Kalou met with a crashing header.
Idan Tal successfully deflected it onto the underside of the crossbar, but the dropping ball struck Jaaskelainen's knee and rolled in.
Mourinho was still not satisfied. He unleashed Drogba at the interval but if he hoped the move would enable his side to tighten their grip on the game, he was mistaken.
Eight minutes after the re-start, Bolton were level again, in almost identical circumstances to their opener, the inexplicably unmarked Davies nodding in Tal's free-kick.
By now, Chelsea had two enemies: Bolton, and the tension smothering Stamford Bridge. The home crowd's mood was dictated as much by events at Goodison Park as their own ground: Everton's second goal provoked another huge roar; United's first prompted quiet mutterings of unease; their equaliser audible groans.
And, all the while, Chelsea laboured. Geremi's fizzing low free-kick just evaded the onrushing Drogba and Michael Essien, and Kalou blazed over when well placed, but Bolton were largely comfortable.
As the seconds ticked away, Meite was lucky not to be punished for a deliberate handball as Drogba attempted a clever turn, but for all Mourinho's fevered reaction on the sidelines, the defender was outside the penalty area.
Chelsea were out of ideas, out of time and out of luck, with news of United's winning goal casting a deathly pall over Stamford Bridge. There is surely no way back now.
