Ranieri plays down title challenge

Chelsea boss Claudio Ranieri is refusing to put any pressure on his players as they continue to hang on to the coat-tails of the Barclaycard Premiership’s top two.

The big-spending Blues maintained their interest in the title race with a 3-2 win at Blackburn courtesy of full-back Glen Johnson’s late, late strike, which cemented their top-three place in the process.

However, Ranieri has consistently written off their chances of overhauling Manchester United and Arsenal despite this week investing another £10m (€14.6m) in Charlton midfielder Scott Parker, who made his debut at Ewood Park.

“Everything in this season is a good experience for us,” he said. “Of course, like every manager, I want to put my team top.

“I have respect for them (Manchester United and Arsenal), but of course I want to beat them.

“I want to win the battle, but without putting my players under pressure. It’s a weak pressure, not a strong pressure.”