Standstill: Drogba fears for Chelsea's title
challenge
Didier Drogba has cast
major doubt over Chelsea's treble tilt after admitting there is 'a bad
mood' around the club.
The Ivory Coast striker claims he and his Blues team-mates are
'suffering' and that Sunday's defeat by Liverpool 'cut away our
legs' in their bid to catch Barclays Premier League leaders
Manchester United.
Chelsea are 10 points adrift of United and must realistically
beat Sir Alex Ferguson's men twice if they are to have any chance
of retaining their crown.
In addition to their championship quest, Carlo Ancelotti's team
are also aiming for success in the Champions League and FA Cup. But
Drogba indicated that morale at the club was at a worryingly low
ebb.
'Our league position is similar to what it was last season,' he
said. 'But absences, and the fact that we've not been scoring as
many goals, has made for a bad mood around the place.
'I'm finding our bad spell hard to live with, as do the rest of
the squad. We are suffering, given that Chelsea are not accustomed
to losing matches. Carlo Ancelotti has been unhappy in recent
weeks.'
Blue day: Meireles is mobbed after scoring the
winning goal against Chelsea
The Double holders missed their chance to close the gap
on United when Raul Meireles's strike earned Liverpool a 1-0
victory at Stamford Bridge.
Before the setback, Chelsea had started to look capable of
mounting a serious championship challenge once more by wining their
previous three league games to arrest a slump that saw them pick up
just 10 points from a possible 33.
'We had started to see light at the end of the tunnel once
again,' said Drogba. 'But this latest defeat by Liverpool has cut
away our legs and jeopardised our chances of winning the league
title once more. It is going to be difficult for us to catch up
with Manchester United.'
The £75million double capture of Fernando Torres and David Luiz
last Monday brought some optimism. But Torres, a British record
£50million signing from Liverpool, endured a nightmare debut
against his former club and was replaced by Salomon Kalou after 66
minutes.
Drogba admitted: 'Fernando is a talented player - and important
for our team - but it was difficult from an emotional point of view
for him to be playing against his former team-mates.'
