17 May 2007, by Sean Gillen

“Don’t rule Valencia out” blasts Miguel

Portugal right-back aiming to snatch La Liga title

This season’s Spanish title race is proving to be one of the closest in history, with four teams still in with a chance of winning La Liga as the sides head into the final four weeks of the campaign.

Real Madrid and Barcelona are level on points at the top, with UEFA Cup winners Sevilla a further two points back in third place, and Valencia in fourth with a four-point difference from the leaders.

With only four games left, few give Valencia a chance of snatching the title, but according to Los Ches’ Portuguese right-back Miguel, the lack of pressure on his side could give them a crucial edge in their hopes to cause a shock.

“People talk about Sevilla, Madrid and Barca, but they are forgetting about us,” said the former Benfica defender. “We are still in there and I think it’s good that they do not consider us and we just keep on winning games.”

“I think that nothing will be decided until the very end because the other three all have very difficult games to come. We have to think that it is possible to win the league. We have to win the matches left. If we finish in the second position, OK, but it would be better to win the title.”

“Sevilla have been the most consistent team this season. Barca’s situation does not surprise me because every team goes through a bad patch and this is their moment for that. Madrid has been through that and so have we, when we had all the injuries.”

This weekend would appear to be Valencia’s best chance of closing the gap on the top two, with the leaders facing tricky away matches while Miguel and co travel to play Jose Nunes’ Mallorca.

“Barca play Atletico, which be a tough game, while Madrid’s game at Recreativo will not be easy,” he said.

“In theory, Saturday’s match against Mallorca is going to be very difficult. Last year, we suffered a lot there, as it’s a team that plays really well at home. We don’t want to suffer the same, so we’ll give it all. It’s really important.”