It is the absence of a world-class striker that many believe to have been the biggest cause of Chelsea failing to land the Premier League title in Jose Mourinho’s first season back at Stamford Bridge. Clearly this was a major factor with their main rivals Liverpool and Manchester City able to call on the worldly talents of Luis Suarez and Sergio Aguero respectively.
Liverpool’s capitulation at Crystal Palace on Monday evening will have broken the hearts of both their supporters and the many neutral spectators of the Premier League that were praying for Brendan Rodger’s side to emerge as unlikely victors in the race for top spot.
Sky Sports have reported that Manchester City’s star striker Sergio Aguero has been ruled out of tonight’s crunch clash with Aston Villa. The away side will be travelling to the Etihad with nothing to lose and have already inflicted defeat on Manuel Pelligrini’s side earlier in the season when they triumphed 3-2 at Villa Park. So just how significant will the absence of the Argentinian prove to be?
Many of us have questioned the so-called mind games employed by Jose Mourinho which begun way back in February when Chelsea came away from the Etihad with an unexpected 0-1 win. At the time, Manchester City had won 11 out of 11 at home in the league and had not failed to score at their own ground in a league match since November 2010.
According to The Independent, Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney is unlikely to feature in tomorrow’s game against Sunderland. This could prove to be a blessing in disguise for interim manager Ryan Giggs, who was set to be faced with a selection headache, with last season’s top goalscorer Robin Van Persie back fit from injury.
According to the Daily Mail, Manchester United, and in particular interim manager Ryan Giggs, will be boosted by the return of last season’s leading Premier League marksman Robin van Persie for the remaining matches of the season.
Chelsea are keen to open contract negotiations with Ashley Cole following his impressive return to first-team action, according to reports from The Telegraph.
Liverpool may have fluffed their big chance to claim an unexpected Premier League crown following their 0-2 defeat at home against a superbly-organised Chelsea side. The plaudits will rightly go the Stamford Bridge outfit and in particular the tactical masterclass delivered by their manager Jose Mourinho.