England gears up for mid-week action

Top teams renew rivalries as title battle heats up in Premier League.

MANCHESTER: Manchester United manager David Moyes claimed his side’s league title bid will gather momentum before the end of the year as he prepares to welcome former club Everton to Old Trafford on Wednesday.

“We are concerned that we are not as close as we would like to be but it is a long season and I do think we have got room to get better and progress,” he said.

“Hopefully we will be there. There are a lot of games coming up in the next eight weeks and we hope to be in the mix at the end of that period.”



Moyes also said striker Wayne Rooney has deserved the plaudits he has received for his performances recently.

“He deserves the adulation he is getting,” added Moyes. “He is playing well and scoring goals. When the moments come he is taking them.”

Arteta says Arsenal are gunning for title



Mikel Arteta believes Arsenal have demonstrated they should be taken seriously in this season’s title race.

Arsenal maintained its four-point lead at the top of the table and will attempt to consolidate its position when Hull City visit the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday.

Yet despite Arsene Wenger’s side dominating the opening third of the season, the title claims of their main rivals including Chelsea, Manchester United and Manchester City have continued to attract support.

Midfielder Arteta believes they made a powerful case when they returned from a testing trip to Cardiff – a place were United and City have dropped points this season – with a victory.

“For us it’s a big statement to come here and get the points, to score three goals away from home is very important,” he said. “We got another clean sheet as well so we’re full of confidence.”

Ba backed to play key Chelsea role

Demba Ba has been tipped to make a major impact on Chelsea’s bid to claim the title for the first time since 2010.

Ba scored his first league goal of the season when he completed the Blues’ 3-1 victory over Southampton and pressed his claims to start when Jose Mourinho’s side face Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on Wednesday.



Defender Branislav Ivanovic believes Ba’s physical strength offers a different option than that provided by fellow forwards Fernando Torres and Samuel Eto’o.

“Demba shows every minute he’s on the pitch that he tries to fight and is a physical striker,” said Ivanovic.

“Sometimes you have to change your style of football and try to hit long balls, he’s very useful for this team and very important.”

Clichy keen to cure City travel sickness

Manchester City defender Gael Clichy admitted he is confident the club can sustain a title challenge provided they address their troublesome away form.

Despite their travel sickness, City are up to third in the table thanks to an imperious home record and are now just six points adrift of leaders Arsenal.



However, Clichy accepted City must drastically improve on a return of four points from games outside of Manchester, starting with their match against West Bromwich Albion on Wednesday.

“We need to go away from home and make sure we start to pick up points,” he said. “This is a new team with a new manager and new players, and we are only going to get better.”

Published in The Express Tribune, December 4^th, 2013.

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