Carlo keen to crank up heat

Ancelotti: Keen to keep pressure on title rivals United

Carlo Ancelotti wants Chelsea to keep piling pressure on Manchester United to send the Premier League title race down to the wire.

After a disastrous festive period that saw the Blues slip down the table, Ancelotti’s men have produced a timely resurgence which has left them clinging to United’s coat-tails in second place.

Victory at home to Tottenham on Saturday will leave the West Londoners just three points behind the leaders and breathing down their necks ahead of the Red Devils’ crunch clash at Arsenal the following day.

And Ancelotti is anxious to keep the heat on their title rivals as the Blues look to clinch the trophy for a second consecutive year.

The manager, who will travel with Chelsea to Old Trafford next weekend, said: “When we were losing at home to United last month, we were looking at an 18-point gap at the top.

“But if we can beat Tottenham we will only be three points behind them and that would be fantastic.

Motivation

“That will be good motivation for us because we need to put pressure on United before their game at Arsenal on Sunday.

“The closer we can get to them, the more pressure we will put on them. United have the experience, tradition and the history to manage that pressure.

“The closer we can get to them, the more pressure we will put on them. United have the experience, tradition and the history to manage that pressure. “
Carlo Ancelotti Quotes of the week

“But we want to keep the Premier League title open until the very last minute.

“To do that we have to beat Tottenham and then win at Old Trafford next weekend.”

Ancelotti is hoping Arsenal can do Chelsea a favour by beating United at Emirates Stadium on Sunday, despite suffering a deflating defeat to Bolton last week that all but ended their own title push.

The Italian boss added: “I’m sure Arsenal will do their best to win. They are a good team.”