Petr Cech has warned his former club Chelsea about the "difficult" match they have against Manchester United on Thursday night. It comes as both sides are going through indifferent patches of form.
The Blues head into the game in third place, five points clear of Arsenal in fourth and with a game in hand on them too. Their form has been inconsistent though, winning three and losing two of their last five fixtures.
They come up against a United side that are sixth, and six points off the Champions League places having played a game more. Ralf Rangnick's men have only won once in their last five, leading the coach to say their top four chances are unrealistic.
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Discussing the challenge ahead, Thomas Tuchel has said he is looking forward to the clash: "I am very happy to have this match, and it will always be a big match for me, no matter which position and what current form they are in. That is why we prepare in the best possible way.
"We don't reflect so much on their situation and what is going on in and around the club. We focus on their last matches, and we should not get confused by the lack of points. For me, this squad is full of quality, and we need to take care on the pitch."
If the side manage to avoid defeat at Old Trafford, they will confirm a place above them this season, with the current gap at 11 points with the Red Devils only having four games left of their campaign. The Blues will also be keen to avoid being dragged into a battle for third and fourth by Arsenal and Tottenham.
It means a result against United is needed to keep some breathing space, though former goalkeeper Cech has claimed it will be a tough match. Writing in his Chelsea column, he said: "Now we know we can look forward to the game in hand we have when we play at Manchester United today. We know they are in a difficult moment because they haven’t had the best run but still you know they play at home, they will try to finish strongly and it's a huge difference for any club to be involved in the Champions League or not be involved so it is an important game.
"It's always a rivalry and big game when Man United play against Chelsea so we expect another difficult match. We’ve had some memorable results at Old Trafford in the past so hopefully we can give ourselves some advantage over the chasing pack as well as keeping us closer to the top two.
"We would need a meltdown from those two over the last five games but we just need to keep winning and see where it takes us." With an FA Cup final to prepare for in a few weeks, that extra time to focus and rotate the squad leading up to it could be crucial.
However, it doesn’t mean that United, despite their poor form, will simply roll over at home.
