Chelsea's Cesc Fabregas not giving up on catching Tottenham in UCL race

Cesc Fabregas accepts he would rather be in Tottenham's position as Chelsea continue to give chase for a Champions League spot.
Chelsea cut the Premier League gap to fourth-placed Spurs to two points as Fabregas secured a 1-0 win at relegation-threatened Swansea.
But Spurs have a game in hand -- against Watford on Monday night -- and will be expected to win at Wembley and increase their advantage to five points with three games to play.
"We won, so they [Spurs] will probably feel that they need to do well and not drop points anymore," Fabregas said. "But the advantage is for them because it's not up to us.
"Even if we win every game and they do well, we will not be in the Champions League next year, so that's why I would prefer to be in their position.
"We just have to keep on winning, but they obviously have the advantage because they are on top."
Chelsea's third successive away win has also given them hope of overtaking Liverpool, who were surprisingly held at home by lowly Stoke on Saturday.
Third-placed Liverpool are six points better off than Chelsea but have played a game more, and travel to Stamford Bridge next weekend.
"We have been winning games, not comfortably, and that is the most important thing," Fabregas said. "Sometimes when you are in a dip of form and you are struggling to get points, to win whatever it takes, to do it is always positive.
"I think we've been doing well that way, because every team we play is fighting for something. You could see that with Swansea and it will be the same when Huddersfield come to Stamford Bridge. We have had to dig in in certain moments and we are ready to do that."
Fabregas' Liberty Stadium winner was his 50th goal in the Premier League - 35 of them coming at his former club Arsenal, but the Spain midfielder had not scored in the league since Chelsea's 2-0 home win against Everton in August.
"I was waiting for it [50th goal] to happen and it took longer than I expected," he said. "Playing in this [deeper] position it's a little bit more difficult for me to get forward and to get into positions to score.
"But in this game we had three midfielders and I have a little bit more freedom to go forward to play a bit more in the position I've played throughout my career."

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ronaldo says there's no 'big rivalry' between him and Messi, just respect

Image
Just about any discussion on a soccer message board or comments section can and will devolve into a Ronaldo vs. Messi argument (it's one of Murphy's Laws), but CR7 himself says there's no rivalry between him and the little Argentine. They're not friends either, but there's plenty of respect between the two. When asked by Coach magazine which opponent he admires the most, Ronaldo said: "There is a big mutual respect between myself and Lionel Messi. The media like to make out like we have this big rivalry, but we don't. It is not like we are good friends, but there is a mutual respect on both sides." Both Ronaldo and Messi have long maintained that there's no longstanding feud between the two, and Ronaldo's son is even a diehard Messi fan. Nothing seems to have changed with Ronaldo's latest statements, even with his struggles so far this season, scoring just four goals in nine matches to Messi's 14 over the same period....
Read more

Malawi man convicted over 'ritual sex' with 104 women

Image
A Malawi court has convicted an HIV-positive man who had confessed to having sex with 104 girls and widows in traditional "sexual cleansing" rituals. Eric Aniva, 45,  was found guilty on Friday on two counts after a one-day trial in a packed courtroom in the district of Nsanje. "It is clear ... that the state has proved beyond reasonable doubt that the accused was engaging in harmful practices," the magistrate,  Innocent Nebi, said. "I find you guilty and convict you accordingly," he said, adding that sentencing would be on November 22. The verdict did not take into account the man's HIV-positive status, because there was no evidence of any of the girls or women having caught the virus. Custom in some parts of southern Malawi dictates that a man, known as a "hyena", is paid to have sex with bereaved widows to exorcise evil spirits and to prevent other deaths from happening. "I dared to reveal what I have been practising...
Read more

Syria Idlib: Trump warns of 'grave humanitarian mistake'

Image
US President Donald Trump has warned the Syrian government and its Russian and Iranian allies against "recklessly" attacking rebel-held Idlib province. In a tweet he warned of "a grave humanitarian mistake" in which hundreds of thousands of people could be killed. Syrian government forces are said to be preparing a huge offensive on the last major rebel stronghold in the country. The UN says such a campaign could have disastrous consequences for the almost three million civilians living there. The US state department also warned on Monday that Washington would respond to any chemical attacks by the Syrian government or its allies. US ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley tweeted: "All eyes on the actions of Assad, Russia, and Iran in Idlib. #NoChemicalWeapons" The government has repeatedly denied ever using chemical weapons. However, experts from the UN and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) have said they are confid...
Read more