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Sports

United aims to stay hot against Chelsea

By Sports Network
Published | Updated

London, England (SportsNetwork.com) - Manchester United's rich vein of form will be put to the test on Saturday when the club heads to Stamford Bridge to take on first-place Chelsea.

The Red Devils enter the weekend on the back of a sensational run of nine wins from 11 Premier League matches, bringing the club to third place in the English top flight.

The club's resurgence has come against top opposition, as well. United has squared off against Tottenham, Liverpool and Manchester City in recent weeks and demolished the trio by a combined score of 9-3.

Next up, however, is an intriguing trip to Stamford Bridge, a venue at which Chelsea has not lost in Premier League play all season.

The Blues have avoided defeat on home soil in league play for 16 straight matches, dating back to April 19, 2014 when they suffered a shock 2-1 loss to Sunderland.

With just two defeats on the season, Chelsea enters Saturday's clash firmly placed atop the table with 73 points from 31 games, seven points better than second-place Arsenal with one fewer game played.

But while Chelsea is unbeaten in its last 11 Premier League matches, many of the performances have not been convincing. Jose Mourinho's men made difficult work of Hull City in a 3-2 victory at the KC Stadium on March 22 before holding off Stoke City in a 2-1 home win and edging QPR, 1-0, behind a late goal from Cesc Fabregas.

The title is in Chelsea's sights, and it's tough to envision Mourinho gambling for a victory when a draw would suffice.

Arsenal and Liverpool will be out of Premier League action for the weekend due to their respective FA Cup semifinal ties, leaving Manchester City with a tremendous opportunity to gain a psychological edge, even if only temporary.

The Citizens have slipped from second place to fourth after a run of three defeats from four games, but they can distance themselves from fifth-place Liverpool by taking maximum points from their meeting with West Ham United at the Etihad on Sunday.

Tottenham, meanwhile, will be aiming to go level with Liverpool on 57 points apiece by claiming a win at Newcastle on Sunday.

Southampton enters the weekend in sixth place and will be hoping to sneak back into the race for a European spot with maximum points at Stoke City on Saturday.

Elsewhere on Saturday, the race to avoid relegation remains strong as Leicester City welcomes Swansea City to the KP Stadium, West Bromwich Albion travels to Selhurst Park to take on Crystal Palace and Burnley heads to Goodison Park to face Everton.