His fellow central defender Toure was not to be outdone and unleashed a fierce shot from 35m out which beat Robinson but went just over the bar.
Arsenal went even closer in the 73rd minute as Robert Pires went on a run down the center and put in a short pass to Edu, whose instinctive shot from just outside the box curled past Robinson but clipped the post and bounced to safety.
The Gunners were back firing on all cylinders and four minutes later a wonderful passing movement saw Reyes unmarked out on the left and found by Gilberto Silva he fired in a shot but it hit the sidenetting.
A quite stunning piece of individual skill by Reyes -- picking the ball up deep in his own half and spinning in between two Spurs defenders -- set up Dennis Bergkamp but his shot from outside the area curled just wide.
Reyes then set up Edu but again a desperate lunge by defender Erik Edman saw him block the shot and it went out for a throw-in.
However a major injustice was avoided when Robbie Keane got free of Senderos but his header from Andy Reid's cross went wide, leaving him shaking his head in frustration.
Keane then claimed vociferously for a penalty for handball by Andy Cole but Riley waved him aside and pointed for a corner -- replays again showed the referee was right.
Champions League preview
With three wins already this season over Liverpool, Jose Mourinho's Chelsea are hot favorites at home to come out on top in their all-English Champions League semifinal.
In Europe, however, the nouveau-riche London upstarts enjoy none of Liverpool's reputation, earned with five European Cup finals and four triumphs.
A surprise win over Juventus in the quarterfinals cemented Liverpool's credentials in Europe and manager Rafael Benitez says it gave his players back the confidence that they could beat Chelsea.
"Juventus was important because it made the players believe we can win games when we're not expected to," Benitez said.
Chelsea beat Liverpool 1-0 in both their Premier League games and 3-2 in the League Cup final in February.
"It's a Champions League game and we don't want to think about it in terms of the Premiership. Our idea is to approach the game with the same mentality as usual. We are playing well, we are not afraid. We can beat anyone," Benitez said.
While Liverpool lost at the weekend to relegation-threatened Crystal Palace, runaway leaders Chelsea earned three more points against neighbors Fulham.
They are on the brink of winning the English league championship for the first time in 50 years and with Roman Abramovich's billions behind them look likely to be a force in English football for seasons to come.
Wins over Barcelona and Bayern Munich, playing some of the most exciting football of the competition, have installed them as second favorites to AC Milan for the Champions League crown.
The return of fleet-footed winger Arjen Robben, injured for almost all of the last 10 weeks, is a boost for Chelsea, who have begun to feel the pace of the season they have dominated since November, losing just one Premier League game.
The London side have looked more vulnerable at the back recently, letting in nine goals in their last four European games after building their reputation on defense.
Mourinho returns to the bench after a two-match suspension over remarks he made about referee Anders Frisk and Barcelona manager Frank Rijkaard during the Nou Camp match in February.
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