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Ronaldo vows to end the title race at Chelsea
Cristiano Ronaldo has warned Chelsea that Manchester United are determined to end the EPL title race by winning their decisive showdown on Saturday.
- Agence France-Presse
- Updated: April 27, 2008 02:26 PM IST
Read Time:2 min
London:
Sir Alex Ferguson's league leaders can effectively wrap up their 17th English title by beating second-placed Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
A victory for the reigning champions would open up a six point gap over Avram Grant's team with only two games to play and United's vastly superior goal difference makes it impossible for Chelsea to overhaul them.
If United do retain the crown they will owe a huge debt of gratitude to Ronaldo. The Portugal winger has an incredible 28 league goals this season and even his penalty miss against Barcelona in midweek couldn't shake his confidence ahead of the trip to west London.
"It will be a tough game but we have a great chance as the team is very confident," he said. "We do not want to drop any points at Chelsea, so it is important we go for the victory."
Even a defeat wouldn't be a disaster for United as they would stay top thanks to their goal difference, but Chelsea deserve credit for keeping up the pressure after trailing by eight points earlier this year.
When the Blues were beaten 2-0 at Old Trafford in Grant's first match back in September, they looked anything but a title contender. Now they have one last chance to make United sweat and Petr Cech is relishing the challenge.
"Every game now is like a final. Personally I play football to play in the big games and this is an exciting time for everyone," Cech said.
"The Premier League is getting towards the end and after Saturday we can be neck-and-neck with Man United.
"Of course, United score the most goals in the league -they have got the attacking threat. But we have got a pretty good record at Stamford Bridge, so we hope to keep that going."
The death of Frank Lampard's mother Pat after a short battle with pneumonia on Thursday cast a shadow over Chelsea's preparations. Lampard could be missing but United also have a worry over Nemanja Vidic, who is struggling to recover from a stomach bug.
Cristiano Ronaldo has warned Chelsea that Manchester United are determined to end the Premier League title race by winning their decisive showdown on Saturday.Sir Alex Ferguson's league leaders can effectively wrap up their 17th English title by beating second-placed Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
A victory for the reigning champions would open up a six point gap over Avram Grant's team with only two games to play and United's vastly superior goal difference makes it impossible for Chelsea to overhaul them.
If United do retain the crown they will owe a huge debt of gratitude to Ronaldo. The Portugal winger has an incredible 28 league goals this season and even his penalty miss against Barcelona in midweek couldn't shake his confidence ahead of the trip to west London.
"It will be a tough game but we have a great chance as the team is very confident," he said. "We do not want to drop any points at Chelsea, so it is important we go for the victory."
Even a defeat wouldn't be a disaster for United as they would stay top thanks to their goal difference, but Chelsea deserve credit for keeping up the pressure after trailing by eight points earlier this year.
When the Blues were beaten 2-0 at Old Trafford in Grant's first match back in September, they looked anything but a title contender. Now they have one last chance to make United sweat and Petr Cech is relishing the challenge.
"Every game now is like a final. Personally I play football to play in the big games and this is an exciting time for everyone," Cech said.
"The Premier League is getting towards the end and after Saturday we can be neck-and-neck with Man United.
"Of course, United score the most goals in the league -they have got the attacking threat. But we have got a pretty good record at Stamford Bridge, so we hope to keep that going."
The death of Frank Lampard's mother Pat after a short battle with pneumonia on Thursday cast a shadow over Chelsea's preparations. Lampard could be missing but United also have a worry over Nemanja Vidic, who is struggling to recover from a stomach bug.
Topics mentioned in this article
Football Steven Gerrard Birmingham City Everton Liverpool Chelsea Arsenal
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