Chelsea legend Tommy Langley is not expecting the FA Cup semi-final between his former side and Tottenham Hotspur to have an effect on the Premier League title race.
The title race was thrown wide open on Sunday when Chelsea lost convincingly at Old Trafford against Manchester United, without hitting the target once in a league game for the first time in a decade.
The gap between the league leaders and second placed Tottenham has been cut down to four points and a league title win for Chelsea is not looking a foregone conclusion any more.
Many believe Tottenham have a great chance to create further doubts in Chelsea minds by beating them in the FA Cup semi-final at the weekend but Langley is not expecting the match to have an effect on the title race.
The Chelsea legend feels Conte will pick a side with an eye on the league game next week and believes it could be a good opportunity for out of form players such as Diego Costa to hit their stride ahead of the last stretch of league games.
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Asked if the FA Cup semi-final will have a knock on effect on the title race, Langley said on Chelsea TV: “No, not one iota.
“He [Conte] might pick a team based on the game on the Tuesday night, which is Southampton because we play 5:30 on the Saturday evening and have a game the following week.
“He may pick a team accordingly.
“I think Costa needs to play and play himself out of this because [Marcos] Rojo in the two games against Man United has rattled him.
“Next week is a chance for him to address it against two good centre-backs at Spurs.”
