Still reeling from conceding a late equalizer to Aston Villa, Chelsea must avoid slipping up again against another relegation-threatened club when the champions face Wolverhampton on Wednesday.
Despite manager Carlo Ancelotti maintaining that Chelsea is improving, the team has won just two of its last eight Premier League matches and has slipped from top to fifth.
Captain John Terry looked to have secured a win for Chelsea on Sunday with an 89th-minute goal, but amid the celebrations Ciaran Clark leveled for Villa to secure a 3-3 draw.
"We are improving and we can save something this season," Ancelotti said. "We lost confidence because the hard moment was too long, but I think we are improving."
Chelsea will face a Wolves side that pulled off a surprise 1-0 win at Liverpool on Wednesday but slumped to a 2-0 defeat by relegation rival West Ham at the weekend and is now bottom of the standings.
At the top, Chelsea is six points adrift of leader Manchester United, which has a game in hand.
"First, they have to win (their matches)," Ancelotti said. "Second, I think that the gap is not a light gap at this moment, but everything is open again. Obviously, we have to beat them (United) here, and we can say something again about the title."
Manchester rivals United and City remain locked at the top of the standings on 41 points although Alex Ferguson's side has played two fewer games and has a superior goal difference.
United hosts Stoke on Tuesday fresh from a 2-1 win at West Bromwich. Midfielder Darren Fletcher is ready for a physical encounter at Old Trafford.
"You know you're in for a battle when you play Stoke and you have to win that battle and earn the right to play," Fletcher said. "They have some players who like to attack and Tony Pulis doesn't like his side to sit back. We expect them to come and have a go at us."
City faces a tough test of its title credentials Wednesday at Arsenal, which beat Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium last Monday and responded to a 2-2 draw at Wigan by winning 3-0 at Birmingham at the weekend.
Arsenal is only two points behind City in third having played a game less and won 3-0 at Eastlands in the reverse fixture in October.
"After the Chelsea game the team was on a high because we got that burden out of the way," Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said. "After we were quickly down again because we dropped two points against Wigan, but I am pleased we were quickly back up again.
"This team could see the positive effect of the Chelsea win. It was there for all to see on Saturday. You can see we have the belief in our game now. That is what will make the title race really interesting."
Tottenham has made that race even more interesting by rattling off three successive victories over Christmas and New Year to sit fourth in the standings.
Spurs goes to Everton on Wednesday enjoying an 11-match unbeaten run in all competitions.
"It's been a fantastic week, nine points," Spurs manager Harry Redknapp said. "Nine points is a great return for us and keeps us right in amongst that top group."
Liverpool is more accustomed to be battling at the top rather than languishing in ninth.
But going into Wednesday's match at Blackburn, a 2-1 victory over Bolton on Saturday eased some of the immediate pressure on manager Roy Hodgson.
"We are pleased for the fans, the owners and the manager but we have all got to stick together and kick on from here, it can't be a false dawn," said Joe Cole, who netted Liverpool's winner on Saturday.
Some of the heat is also off Aston Villa manager Gerard Houllier following the draw at Chelsea.
"We showed character, we showed bravery, we didn't bottle it, we played," said Houllier, whose side hosts Sunderland on Wednesday.
West Ham and Wigan, who are both directly below Villa and just above the bottom three on 20 points, are also in action on Wednesday.
West Ham goes to Newcastle and Wigan is at Bolton, which is riding high in seventh.
While Wolves must tangle with Chelsea, the two other clubs in the relegation zone have an easier task on paper, with Fulham hosting West Brom and Birmingham traveling to Blackpool on Tuesday.
