Marcel Desailly interview: Premier League title is Chelsea’s to lose, while Arsenal must win at Stamford Bridge to remain in race
Former Chelsea skipper Marcel Desailly is adamant that the Premier League crown is firmly within his former side’s grasp and only a self-inflicted collapse will deny the Stamford Bridge club a sixth top-flight title.
The Blues boast a nine-point lead at the top of the table following a draw against Liverpool at Anfield on Tuesday, while fellow high-flyers Arsenal and Tottenham faltered and dropped points against Watford and Sunderland respectively.
Fifteen matches stand in the way of Chelsea regaining the trophy which they surrendered to Leicester last season, the first of which is Saturday’s showdown with rivals Arsenal at Stamford Bridge.
Asked if the title was now Chelsea’s to lose, Desailly told City A.M.: “Yes. The Premier League is tough and you can lose in small cities but we know that Tottenham, Manchester City and Manchester United don’t have the consistency in performance.
Marcel Desailly lifted the World Cup with France in 1998
“So you can say that if Chelsea keep going like this for another month, they are probably going to win the title. It starts from the first game on Saturday against Arsenal.
“If Chelsea win then it pushes away Arsenal a little bit and puts pressure on them and you have the feeling that you are about to do something good.”
Arsenal hammered the Blues 3-0 at Emirates Stadium in September, after which manager Antonio Conte switched to his preferred formation of a back three. Chelsea have a formidable record of 15 wins in 17 matches since.
That victory was only Arsenal’s third over Chelsea in 16 top-flight fixtures dating back to 2009. Desailly, who lifted the World Cup with France in 1998, insists the Gunners must triumph at Stamford Bridge to retain any hope of a title challenge.
“They have to for the confidence, for Arsene Wenger to have a real and direct discussion with his players,” added Desailly, who was speaking at a TAG Heuer Premier League Pressure Test.
“For him to say: ‘I’m happy that you have reacted well to defeat [against Watford], guys we still have a chance, let’s stick together so we have a chance to go and have consistent performances throughout the remainder of the season.’
“If they have ideas of winning the league, they cannot have these two bad results in a row. If they lose against Chelsea, Arsene cannot come and pretend on going to win the title.”
Rather like during Jose Mourinho’s first stint in charge of Chelsea, Desailly believes that with Conte able to further mould his squad in the summer, the Blues have the potential to dominate English football in the coming years.
“I don’t know if Chelsea have a Frank Lampard or Didier Drogba in the team, players of that level, but I feel like there is maybe a cycle which is going to go higher and higher,” he said. “In the next three years we’ll still see Chelsea at their best with this new set up.
“Conte will choose the players that he wants because he has used about 90 per cent of the players that Mourinho chose [during the previous campaign]. Next season I’m sure that the set up will be at least as strong.”
Marcel Desailly was speaking at the TAG Heuer Premier League Pressure Test. TAG Heuer is the first ever Official Timekeeper and Official Watch of the Premier League. www.tagheuer.com/pressuretest