Chelsea Back On The Right Track

Although Chelsea have blown a massive opportunity to be well clear at the top of the table, in a Premier League season where everybody is dropping points – in Manchester United's case, even without losing – they do seem to have turned their season around in time to save their boss from the sack. Had their dismal run of form continued then it would have been almost inevitable that Roman Abramovich would have wielded his managerial axe once more, but three wins in a row following the 7-0 FA Cup rout of Ipswich has breathed new life into a campaign which seemed to be circling the drain.

With just two wins from ten domestic fixtures, rumours of discontent amongst the playing squad, the surprise dismissal of popular coach Ray Wilkins, and Frank Lampard's admission that he had "lost the feeling of being able to win every week", it seemed that all hope was lost of not just winning the title that bookies had been offerings football odds as short as 1/3 for, but also of even qualifying in the top four and retaining Champions' League football for next season.

But with the recent change in luck – or at least results – Chelsea head into a tough run of fixtures starting with an away match against an in-form Bolton Wanderers. From there they face away fixtures against Everton in the FA Cup and Sunderland in the league, before welcoming Liverpool to Stamford Bridge – the team whose 2-0 victory back in November acted as the catalyst for their downfall.

Carlo Ancelotti however remains upbeat about his side's chances of rediscovering the form they were showing at the start of the season, and of putting together a late charge up the table, even if the football predictions suggest otherwise.

"We're doing better. The difficult moment is gone. It was very important to show the quality we used to show in the past – we are working hard, we are able to move on and we will be stronger,"

said Carlo Ancelotti.

The timing couldn't be better either – as Everton's Steven Pienaar has chosen a move to rivals Spurs ahead of them, it seems unlikely that any new faces will be arriving this transfer window.