Nicolas Anelka says Chelsea will beat Manchester United for this season's Premiership title - because of the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Anelka said: "For me, Chelsea are the favourites to win it this year. United will be strong and don't let anybody kid you that they won't be just because they sold their best player.
"Arsenal and Liverpool have some very good players but, when it comes down to the last five games, it wouldn't surprise me one bit if it was only United and Chelsea left fighting it out. The games against United will be very important and we are already one up on them this year after the Community Shield.
"We owe them for last season and we are confident that they will not make it four in a row.
"Our manager is a legend and a born winner. There is nobody at this club who doesn't have a winning mentality. It filters down right from the top, from the manager and the chairman. They know what they want and we know we have to deliver.
"With what we have in place here, I believe Chelsea can be victorious on all fronts this season."