Louis Saha has applied salt to the wounds he inflicted on Chelsea on Wednesday night by saying that Manchester United remain the dominant force in the Premier League and will be spurred by the leaders' defeat at Goodison Park.
The Everton striker's two goals ended Chelsea's 13-match unbeaten run, brought David Moyes his first win over the league leaders in 23 attempts and helped his former club close to within a point of Carlo Ancelotti's team. Saha's 100th and 101st league goals in English football capped an authoritative display against John Terry, who erred for both on the night.
And though admittedly biased in favour of United, where he spent four injury-plagued seasons, the French forward believes they have the edge over Chelsea in their pursuit of a fourth successive league title.
Saha said: "I'd love to say Everton are going to win the league but obviously that's not going to happen, and I think it will be tight between them. Chelsea are very strong but I think United are better, and personally I would be delighted if they won it. I'd definitely prefer that. I still keep in touch with a lot of them from United, especially Patrice Evra. Wayne Rooney and Owen Hargreaves are on the phone a lot, and they've got a really good bunch of guys. But I will probably have more messages and calls than ever after this result. Our win was a big boost for United but the main thing has to be Everton, and taking us as high up the table as possible."
The 31-year-old now has 15 goals for the season and further underlined the extent of his rehabilitation at Everton last week when agreeing a new two-year contract with the club. Saha admitted that the protracted negotiations had been a distraction but, with his immediate future secured, believes he can continue to shed his injury-prone reputation on Merseyside.
"The main thing for me is to stay at this level now. That's my only goal," added Saha, whose next opponent will be United at Goodison on Saturday week. "I'm really enjoying my football. I had a spell with bad injuries, so I'm just happy with how it's going. But it is a relief having the contract talks settled too because it was a bit stressful. I have always said I see my long-term future at Goodison and the win over Chelsea showed the self-belief we have. It was not about just me, but the great spirit we have here."
Saha rejected claims that Terry was culpable for Chelsea's fourth away defeat of the season, particularly with his defending for Everton's 75th-minute winner, and preferred to pay tribute to his own colleagues instead. "I know what people are saying [about Terry] but they have got to realise what a great ball it was from Sylvain [Distin] for the second goal."
Everton, meanwhile, may discover today the extent of the ankle injury that Marouane Fellaini suffered at Liverpool last weekend. The Belgium international was due to see a specialist in London yesterday amid concerns he could face a lengthy spell on the sidelines.
