English football’s foremost metropolises face back-to-back bouts over the coming days as Chelsea go head-to-head with Manchester United at Old Trafford before Tottenham Hotspur’s one-on-one with Manchester City at Eastlands.
The nation’s unofficial second city plays host to their Capital counterparts twice in three days, with Premier League Champions Chelsea seeking to overthrow pace-setters United with two games to play after months spent atop the table for Sir Alex Ferguson’s side, while Tottenham travel North in search of the improbable capture of the last Champions League spot on offer, with both London sides having achieved their objectives in similar fashion last season.
As a result of Arsenal's narrow superiority over Manchester's finest on Sunday, the Blues have now whittled down the Red Devils’ lead from what was a seemingly unassailable 15 points in February to just 3, with a win in their rivals’ backyard all that now separates Carlo Ancelotti’s squad from heading into their last pair of fixtures in front.
With straightforward matches on paper to come for the League leaders at an out-of-sorts Blackburn Rovers and at home to a potentially doomed Blackpool side, United will feel that a share of the spoils against their arch-nemeses will be sufficient for them to surpass Liverpool’s record of 18 top flight titles in three weeks’ time.
However, if the West Londoners were to claim a landmark victory, not only would the challengers’ morale be dealt a Henry Cooper-esque blow but momentum would also firmly favour the holders.
On the other hand, Chelsea could win their remaining matches and still come out second best with goal difference ultimately decisive, as tricky obstacles at home to Newcastle United and a daunting trip to Goodison Park - where the Pensioners have traditionally faultered - are unlikely to yield the barrage of goals which might ram home their advantage in the manner that a flurry of summer goals did for them last year.
If Chelsea were to edge out United by the odd goal and claim a comfortable 2-goal win over the Magpies before somehow winning by a nose at Everton, a similarly slender success at Ewood Park for Fergie’s men would leave them needing a 4-goal win over Ian Holloway’s team on the last day to take the trophy on goals scored. Considering this was achieved by Chelsea before the oranges were out back in September while the Tangerines were enjoying extraordinarily long-odds to go down, this would appear to be a triumph too far for both those beside the seaside and those along the Thames.
Harry Redknapp’s Tottenham, however, are staring at longer odds still following Saturday’s surrender by fair means and foul at Stamford Bridge. They now sit a whopping seven points back on City in fourth, from where, like Chelsea, a repeat of last year’s heroics in this fixture is imperative but may also prove irrelevant unless City produce a slip-up of “I would love it” proportions to allow the Lilywhites to sneak through the back door at this stage.
In an alarming display of symmetry, this Saturday pits City, as with Chelsea a fortnight later, against David Moyes’ Toffees on Merseyside, while United’s final day opponents Blackpool travel to North London that same day, where news of a City win would render the result all but worthless with regard to UEFA’s premier club competition.
As alternative endings go, the twist may, in fact, be as that of a knife and come from another part of the North-West, after Liverpool yesterday ousted Spurs from the one, much-maligned, Europa League berth with a comfortable 3-0 win over Kenny Dalglish’s former club Newcastle. Even in this most manic of seasons, for King Kenny to crown his comeback by avoiding an ignominious inland campaign by pipping Harry Redknapp to 5th place, especially in light of this campaign’s continental capers at White Hart Lane and beyond, it would surely take a Director’s Cut that was not so much remarkable as laughable.
Oh, would you look at that. Penultimate match day of the season: Liverpool v Tottenham at Anfield.
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