Harlington, Sept 26: Ranieri cautious on Chelsea's ambitions as he prepares for game against Aston Villa. For Claudio Ranieri, in the glare of English soccer's spotlight, it is a long time from September to May and the Chelsea coach will make no promises about his multi-talented team until the spring.
Despite their second place in the premier league, only a point behind leaders Arsenal with a game in hand, and their early success in the Champions League, Ranieri refuses to talk up the London side's chances.
"It's too soon to talk about Chelsea as premier league contenders," he said on Thursday after a session at the side's training ground near Heathrow airport. "We are just beginning to build foundations. "Of course I'd like still to be in this situation in May but it's only September," he added a little impatiently when asked if the club, fuelled by Roman Abramovich's apparently bottomless purse, could challenge Manchester United and Arsenal for glory. "We've started well but it's important to continue -- that's the difficult part," the Italian said.


Ranieri is under intense pressure to succeed after spending $175 million on new players since Russian billionaire Abramovich took over last July.


British newspapers have speculated repeatedly that he will be replaced after England manager Sven Goran Eriksson was spotted meeting Abramovich and chief executive Trevor Birch was cast aside in favour of Manchester United supremo Peter Kenyon.


Chelsea's 5-0 hammering of Wolverhampton Wanderers last week prompted newspaper forecasts that the club, who won their only league title in 1955, would romp away with the premier league.


"Wolves was one game, only one game," he said. "In other matches we have played well sometimes and we have switched off sometimes. There is still a lot to do."


Ranieri said he had a fully fit squad for Saturday's home tie against Aston Villa with Romanian Adrian Mutu, who has scored four league goals since joining last month, French defender Marcel Desailly and Argentine midfielder Juan Sebasian Veron recovered from ankle injuries.


He will be up against a side buoyed by 5-0 midweek League Cup win over Wycombe Wanderers and by the rediscovered form of striker Juan Pablo Angel who has scored six goals in his last four games.


With two and in some cases three top players for every position, Ranieri has an embarrassment of choice for his starting line-up but he is also mindful of next Wednesday's Champions League encounter with Besiktas.


Chelsea came away from Sparta Prague nine days ago with a 1-0 win in their first Champions League game for four seasons.


Bureau Report