Eden Hazard

Eden Hazard reveals surprising duo for Chelsea's chief title rivals

Published Feb. 1, 2017 1:16 p.m. ET

Alex Dowd

Chelsea are runaway favorites for the Premier League title, but they're not putting the cart before the horse. There are 15 matches remaining and 45 points up for grabs, so anything can happen. Still, with a nine-point cushion at the top, the Blues have to be feeling good about their chances.

If someone were to run down Chelsea, which teams have the best shot? "I think Arsenal and Manchester United," Blues star Eden Hazard told Sky Sports' correspondent Thierry Henry. Heading into the weekend, Chelsea have a nine-point lead on the Gunners but boast a whopping 15 point buffer ahead of United.

It's a curious list, to be sure. What about Tottenham, who are in second place and just recently ended Chelsea's winning streak? Or Liverpool, one point back of Spurs and unbeaten against Chelsea? It could even be argued that Man City would make more sense as a threat than United. Either way, Hazard has his reasons.

"United had a bad first part of the season and I think for a couple of games now, they played well," Hazard said. "They drew against Stoke, but they have good players and the squad is very good. The manager is good, so they will be second or third."

OK, so he at least had the sense to say United wouldn't win the league. Crazy things have happened before, but relinquishing a 15 point lead to the sixth-place team in 15 matches would be a massive fail for the Blues.

It'd almost be like finishing 10th in the league the season after winning the title.

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Eden Hazard

English Premier League