Gerrard: We’re dark horses
The Observer - 16 February 2014 - 15
L
iverpool captain Steven
Gerrard believes his team
are outsiders in the race for
this season’s Premier League
title, labelling his side as “dark horses”.
Following their 5-1 drubbing of
Arsenal on the weekend, the Reds
earned a come-from-behind 3-2
victory over Fulham on Wednesday
evening to bring them within four
points of League leaders Chelsea.
Gerrard acknowledged that his side
are on a good run of form, yet refused
to look too far ahead, saying there are
still many games left in the campaign.
“We’re in the mix,” the midfielder
told Liverpool’s official website. “It’s
still early days, there’s a lot of football
to be played and we’re not going to get
carried away. But we are in good form.
We feel as if we’re dark horses.”
Yet the England international
believes his side have a slight edge as
they do not have the distraction of
European competition this season.
“We just carry on playing and trying
to win as many games as we can,” he
said. “We have the advantage, in a
funny way, of no European football,
because we have just got the league and
FA Cup to focus on.”
The Reds last claimed league
honours in the 1989/90 campaign.■
Nasri: We can beat Messi aiming to
peak at World Cup
Barcelona
B
M
anchester City winger Samir
Nasri believes his side can beat
Spanish giants Barcelona in their
Champions League Round of 16
tie.
The Frenchman believes the Blaugrana are more
vulnerable than in previous years, and feels that
City have the quality to overcome their illustrious
opponents when they square off in the first leg on
Tuesday.
“With City, we’re still in four competitions with
the aim of winning them and in the Champions
League, we are going to have an exciting game
against Barça,” said the France international.
Wenger:
Title is
Chelsea’s
to lose
“For me, they are more beatable than in the past
and personally, I think we can knock them out.
“If our injured players are back, with a full team,
I think we can beat them.”
Nasri, who has not featured for the Citizens
since damaging knee ligaments against Newcastle
last month, is hoping to return to action when
his side host Chelsea in their fifth-round FA Cup
fixture on Saturday.
City boss Manuel Pellegrini is set to rest a host
of star players for the encounter against the Blues
as he looks ahead to his team’s Champions League
clash next week.■
arcelona forward Lionel Messi has faith he will be at the top of his
game come June when he aims to lead Argentina to victory at the
World Cup.
Despite being injured for two months of the current campaign,
Messi still has 19 goals in 24 matches for his club, and hopes to continue his good
form at Fifa’s flagship competition.
“Slowly but surely I will be getting there to hopefully peak at the right time of
the year,” he told BBC Football Focus. “I hope this could be a gr