Sam Allardyce has dismissed Manchester United's chances of dethroning Chelsea this season even if his Bolton side defeat the league leaders this afternoon, insisting the champions' staggering recovery last week having trailed against West Ham must have sent "a shiver" down Alex Ferguson's spine.
Wanderers welcome Jose Mourinho's side to the Reebok Stadium this lunchtime attempting to arrest a four-match losing sequence and offer United some hope of reducing Chelsea's lead. But Allardyce is convinced time is against Ferguson's side.
"Are United that close? It's not that close," said Allardyce. "It would take three defeats on the trot for Chelsea and three wins on the trot by United. Is that going to happen? There are only a handful of games left and, going into the Sunderland game, there was a gap of seven points. I can't see it. When you're down to single figures in terms of the number of games left, it's very difficult to see Chelsea slipping up based, if nothing else, on what happened last week.
"It crossed my mind when West Ham scored and Chelsea were reduced to 10 men that this could be the chink in their armour exposed. If they'd lost that game and United beat Arsenal, would that affect them? Players and managers can do strange things under pressure and it can all fall away. But look at the response. That said everything about Chelsea: shut up talking and do it by your actions.
"It must have sent a shiver down everybody's spine, Alex Ferguson included. I just stood back in amazement at how well they came together and how much they completely dominated a West Ham side who had the opportunity to be heroes against their bitter rivals. Chelsea just kicked into action, every man and his dog almost saying they'd give 25 per cent more than they've ever given to make sure they didn't put too much unwanted pressure on themselves. It was an unbelievably professional job.
"Chelsea have taken the Premiership to another level. Normally, over the last nine years, United would be sitting at the top of the table now with their current points total, and you have to admire how far they've come to challenge, but Chelsea have simply taken it on. Instead of losing three or four, they lose one or two; instead of drawing five or six, they draw one or two; they win the rest. They do such a professional job, so regularly and so consistently. Nothing penetrates the togetherness they have."
Bolton will attempt to do just that in an attempt to revive their own stuttering pursuit of automatic qualification for the Uefa Cup. They are six points off sixth place with a game in hand.
Allardyce will hope his team emulate their recovery from two goals down against Arsenal three years ago, a draw which ultimately handed Ferguson's team the momentum with which to claim their eighth Premiership title.
"That was a miracle, that result," Allardyce recalled. "We were the underdogs back then and we will be again against Chelsea. Everything about them completely dwarfs a club like ours from start to finish.
"My players are feeling pretty sorry for themselves but they need to have a better attitude on the pitch. We know the challenge ahead but the Premiership's always been so interesting because shock results happen now and again. Forget Chelsea or United, this is a massive weekend for us. If we want to get into the Uefa Cup, this is make or break."
Meanwhile, Sol Campbell's World Cup ambitions were boosted yesterday when it was confirmed he should return next week after surgery on his broken nose.
The bone was reset on Thursday night, 24 hours after breaking it against Portsmouth, and Arsene Wenger says the 31-year-old should be back in contention for next Saturday's derby with Tottenham.
"There's a minor chance he will be available for Wednesday (against Villarreal) but he should be available for next Saturday," Wenger said. "At best, he has to keep out of contact for one week. It's a minor problem."
Arsenal's opening game at the club's new Emirates Stadium will be Dennis Bergkamp's testimonial against one of his former clubs, Ajax, on July 22nd.
