Either Man United or Arsenal for the title
Only Manchester
United or Arsenal can win this season’s Premier League title, United
manager Alex Ferguson said on Friday, four days before his side face
champions Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
United are one point
clear of Arsenal at the top of the table with a game in hand which they
will use up when they visit Wigan Athletic on Saturday.
With the leading
teams having 11 or 12 matches to play, United are eight points clear of
third-placed Manchester City, 10 ahead of Tottenham Hotspur and 12 clear
of Chelsea.
If United beat Wigan for the 12th successive league match they would be 15 points ahead of Chelsea by the time the sides meet.
Ferguson, who has led his side to 11 league titles, virtually dismissed Chelsea’s chances of retaining the championship.
Consistency
“Normally, two teams
break away when you come to the end of the season, it’s always two
teams — that’s the way it’s looking at the moment,” he told reporters.
“I think it’s either Arsenal or ourselves, either one of us will win it.”
Ferguson also
dismissed remarks made by Chelsea captain John Terry who said United
might buckle under the pressure of challenging for the title, the FA Cup
and the Champions League.
“You try things. We all try things,” he said.
“But it won’t be easy (for Chelsea) to come back from that kind of points deficit.
“I said some time
ago, the team that is most consistent would win the league. That is why I
stress that we have to keep our momentum going and get that
consistency.”
Ferguson said
experienced striker Michael Owen, who has made only two substitute
appearances in the league this year and played one full match in the FA
Cup, could face Wigan after recovering from injury.
“He is back training and could be available on Saturday,” he said.
Ryan Giggs could
also return after missing last week’s FA Cup match against Crawley Town
and the Champions League trip to Olympique Marseille.
REUTERS
Leave a Reply