Terry writes off Arsenal's chances

zocoss SG

John Terry says he does not regard Arsenal as a major threat to Chelsea in the title race. The defender can only see his club and Manchester United lasting the course and expects Arsene Wenger's side to slip away and join Liverpool among the also-rans.

Chelsea may be four points behind United and Arsenal at the top but they are gaining momentum and £15million new signing Nicolas Anelka thinks he can deliver them the league.

After dropping only two points over the Christmas period, manager Avram Grant is starting to get key players back and Terry thinks they will soon overhaul their London rivals. He said: "United are playing the best football and always score a lot of goals so they are the biggest threat. Arsenal are still up there but I can just see them slipping away a bit. It is going to be difficult for Liverpool to win it from the position they are in.

"With the top three so many points in front, it will be hard for them to catch up. We can just keep winning, get our players back and we still have a good chance." Terry said: "We are playing well. We are not conceding, we are scoring, Wrighty is on fire and Anelka is a great signing. This season, he was the player I would most like to have seen in a Chelsea shirt and we have got him.

"We're getting everything with Anelka. He gives us pace in behind defenders that stretches teams, has all-round quality and will make a big difference. "Things are looking good for us, especially considering the players we have out. After Jose Mourinho left everyone doubted us and, with the spine of the side out, other teams probably expected us to drop points, but we have kept winning and it is great to be in this position after Christmas. We have got players coming back and we are still in contention."

Branisalv Ivanovic, from Lokomotiv Moscow, is expected to be the next signing this week to bolster the defence as Chelsea compete for four trophies. But Terry insists the League is their chief concern. He said: "I am determined to get the title back. In the Champions League, you need a bit of luck and we have seen teams who have gone on but not been great in the league like Liverpool and Arsenal. Our main target this year is the Premier League."

brokenluv SG

i believe this season the title race will be quite a close one between these 3. my prediction is :

1st ManU
2nd Chelsea
3rd Arsenal

glacer SG

Arsenal might not win the title this season. They are inconsistent and sometimes over elaborative

X-men SG

its going to be close fight.

my prediction is :

1st ManU
2nd Arsenal
3rd Chelsea
4th Man City Shocked

Trump_Card SG

My predictions

1st - Man Utd
2nd - Arsenal
3rd - Chelsea
4th - Liverpool/Everton/Man City

dragg SG

if anelka can score regularly it will be a close fight.

felirox SG

We’ll see who will be the last man standing.. Dont write other people’s team off so easily u big headed c*nt. sorry chelski fans.

a-Lost-9uY SG

being confident is gd..

but being too over-confident brings u no where

sand king SG

I hope it goes this way:

Man Utd
Chelsea
Arsenal
Everton

Have a new face in the top 4 Laughing

the Bear SG

i dunno.. the introduction of The Incredible Sulk amongst Chelsea may cause some problems..

but then, in a squad which has to arrive 3 hours earlier each game in order to manoeuvre their collective massive egos into the stadium, it may be just normality Laughing

Gasfene SG

everyone is saying manutd gonna win

zocoss SG

The season is still a long way to go... If people start to think its Man u's just after their 6-0 win over Newcastle... I think its still very much too premature. I must say Chelsea is looking very good and i am rather impress with what Grant has done despite the injuries he had... If given that Jose was still there... i am sure he would have made a big deal out of it already...

weiwei83 SG

I hope chelsea wins and this will prove to people that anyone can be a good manager. eg If you put raddy abravomic (singapore coach) in chelsea, chelsea will still win.

This will show that managers like SAF and AW are overrated and overpaid.

Pitot SG

The fact that he put nobody grant there is just to show jose that anyone can get the job done and he is not that special.

however, i dont know abt AW but i think SAF contributed alot to football not only in a Man Utd way, but also a british way, thats why he got knighted. I think he is worth every penny he gets.

Gasfene SG

AW contributed the french way lor.
benitez the spanish way.

zocoss SG

If going by your theory, Graeme Souness will make a great manager / coach too? Laughing

Pitot SG

AW perhaps but benitez? Ask the pool fans on that.

How many players outside manchester united in the EPL have links with the club?
How many ex players of SAF are now successful managers?

He brought the club to where it is now, i dont think any united fan dare to even think about united without SAF.

KrU SG

Winning nine league titles is over-rated? Think again.

turbo_drift SG

Wenger's record (for Arsenal):

Winner

* Premier League (3): 1998, 2002, 2004
* FA Cup (4): 1998, 2002, 2003, 2005
* FA Community Shield (4): 1998, 1999, 2002, 2004
* Manager of the Year (3): 1998, 2002, 2004

Runner-up

* Premier League (5): 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2005
* FA Cup (1): 2001
* League Cup (1): 2007
* FA Community Shield (2): 2003, 2005
* UEFA Champions League (1): 2006
* UEFA Cup (1): 2000

Overrated? My foot. Laughing

Spartans SG

The managers and players may not be overrated but they are definitely overpaid.