Mind games begin as title race heats up

With no clear favourite in sight, top four face off against each other.

LONDON: Leicester City manager Claudio Ranieri has scoffed at suggestions that the Premier League leaders are under pressure ahead of their trip to title rivals Arsenal on Sunday.

Long considered plucky overachievers, Leicester went five points clear after winning 3-1 at Manchester City last weekend and were subsequently installed as title favourites by some British bookmakers.

They can put eight points between themselves and Arsenal if they win at the Emirates, and Ranieri says that their new status as front-runners is something to be savoured.

“The pressure is for the other teams, not us,” said Ranieri. “The money and the big gap? We have pressure for our little gap, Arsenal have more pressure because they have spent more money. Tell me why should I feel any pressure? We are close to continuing to dream with our fans. Nobody wake us up please.”



With City and second-placed Tottenham Hotspur guaranteed to take points from each other on Sunday, Ranieri’s side have an extra incentive to claim a first win at Arsenal since September 1973.

It is a mark of how seriously Leicester’s challenge is being taken that both City manager Manuel Pellegrini and his Arsenal counterpart Arsene Wenger have declared them favourites, doubtless in the hope that they will crumble beneath the weight of expectation.

While City and Arsenal continue to compete on multiple fronts, Leicester have only the league to concentrate on, but Wenger is hopeful that the lack of distractions will prove a distraction in itself.

“Time to think can be a disadvantage if you not are thinking in a positive way,” he said. “It is true that sometimes the less time you have to wait for the next game, the better it is.”



The experienced Frenchman said the Foxes may start feeling the heat sooner or later. “I believe they are still in a position where they think they have nothing to lose,” he said. “But once you are top of the league, you can also think about losing what you have. That is where the nerves come in a little bit. I do not know how they will respond to that.”

City in good Kompany

Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany is set to end his latest injury absence and return to lead his side’s bid to revive their title challenge against Tottenham.

“Vincent has worked the last three weeks without any problems. He played 45 minutes in a friendly with the under-21s so I think he is ready to play,” said Pellegrini.

Sunderland defeat piles more pressure on Van Gaal

David de Gea’s late own goal earned Sunderland a 2-1 win over Manchester United and a vital three points in their bid for Premier League survival.

Tunisian Wahbi Khazri gave the hosts the lead after three minutes but Anthony Martial grabbed the equaliser six minutes before half-time.

De Gea then failed to deal with Lamine Kone’s powerful header eight minutes from time, deflecting the ball over the line to leave United six points behind fourth-placed Manchester City. 

Published in The Express Tribune, February 14^th, 2016.

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