Watch Claudio Ranieri, Louis van Gaal and Juan Mata speak about the match the whole world wants to watch… plus hear from the Leicester fans who are living in dreamland.
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Manchester United host Leicester City this Sunday in what could prove to be a title decider for the visitors. When United were last champions in 2013, Leicester were sixth in the Championship.
Factor in the inconsistencies of both Manchester City and Arsenal over the past six weeks, and there is a realistic hope that United will be able to secure a Champions League place for next season.
Not numerous Stamford Bridge faithful will be holding their breaths on this one as they face a tough run of games against Tottenham, Sunderland, Liverpool and Leicester to end a forgettable campaign.
Van Gaal bristled at the suggestion his players would find it chastening to play in a match where the visiting team were the ones chasing the title.
Had some claimed this fixture could determine the league winners a few years ago, the obvious presumption would have been that United were about to claim the title again.
“I don’t think you can say that we haven’t played at a certain level”.
“The players we are now playing are not used to being champions”, he said.
Louis van Gaal’s men are now fifth in the table and five points adrift of the top four heading into this weekend’s round of games – although the Red Devils have played one game less than their closest rivals. I don’t think (Matteo) Darmian is used to being the champion, and De Gea was never champion.
‘Memphis Depay was a champion previous year so not many players.
United, though, are desperate to remain in the hunt for Champions League qualification and will be brimming with confidence after booking an FA Cup final place with a last-gasp Anthony Martial victor against Everton at Wembley last weekend.
“We are fighting to turn this dream into a reality”.
Leicester’s remarkable season has stunned football, but Van Gaal insisted the Foxes’ exploits have not been a total shock to him.
Tottenham’s failure to beat West Brom on Monday means Leicester, who are seven points clear and nine matches unbeaten, require just three points from their three remaining games in order to be crowned champions.
The Dutchman praised his opposite number Claudio Ranieri, whom he first battled against when the pair were at Barcelona and Valencia respectively in the late 1990s. He has always organised his teams very well. For me it’s not any surprise.
“We have players who can come in and do well”.
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Even casting back to the days of the old Football League championship, Brian Clough’s Derby and Nottingham Forest wins in 1972 and 1978 were astounding, though Derby had finished ninth the season before, rather than fourth bottom, like Leicester.
