Cech "We still believe"

Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech said the club have not given up hope of winning the Premier League title.

The Blues are 12 points behind leaders Manchester United but have two games in hand on them and are still to play the Old Trafford club in May.

"You can see teams dropping points so we will definitely have a go and try to retain the title," said Cech ahead of the trip to Blackpool on Monday.

"Realistically, we know it is not in our hands."

Chelsea beat United 2-1 last Tuesday to improve their slim chances of winning the title and, although Cech has stated that the Stamford Bridge club "have to wait for the other teams to slip up", he is hoping they can finish off a turbulent season in successful fashion.

He added: "It's been an up and down season and I think now we are going up again and, hopefully, we will end up on a high."

"A lot of times in the past, I've said the atmosphere is good," he commented. "Sometimes it wasn't really good because the players had more difficulties to train, with less confidence. Now the confidence has improved with the results.Blues coach Carlo Ancelotti has warned against taking the Blackpool game too lightly after a victory over United, which he believes has helped generate belief within his squad.

"The atmosphere is really good. The players are training well with confidence and ability, so I have confidence in the future."

Ancelotti added: "When you win against United, it means you're good enough to play against stronger teams.

"So this result obviously improves your confidence."

Blackpool defeated Tottenham in their last game at home and Ancelotti has told his players they need to be on their guard to avoid an upset at Bloomfield Road.

"It's the wrong way to prepare by thinking it will be easier against Blackpool than United," he said.

"We have to be more in focus against them than against United. It's easy to stay focused against United because there's so much attention on the game, and a lot of pressure.

"There is less pressure against Blackpool, so my aim is to maintain their [players'] focus."

Blackpool followed up the win over Spurs with a 4-0 defeat at Wolves and Seasiders boss Ian Holloway is looking for a reaction from his players against Chelsea.

"What we need is a response and who's to say we can't do to Chelsea what we did to Tottenham," explained Holloway.

"If you look at the Tottenham game they had more possession and double the shots but our finishing was lethal on the day.

"I believe we can get three points but we are going to have to be a tad fortunate and play the best we have played."