CHELSEA goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois admitted the Blues' hopes of finishing in the top four are now over despite a late comeback against Manchester United.
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| Thibaut Courtois made a number of saves against manchester United to keep Chelsea in the contest |
Guus Hiddink's men levelled late at Stamford Bridge as Diego Costa came to the Blues' rescue after Jesse Lingard seemed to have won the game for the visitors earlier on.
The 1-1 draw between the two rivals highlighted how Chelsea have recovered well as a team under Hiddink's guidance following their dreadful first half of the season.
However, nine defeats in their first 16 Premier League matches was always going to be too much to come back from in England's top flight.
Chelsea are now 17 points behind fourth-placed Manchester City with just 13 games remaining, while league leaders Leicester have a huge 23-point gap on the reigning champions.
Courtois missed part of the season through injury, and even though the spirit appears back in the players, he confessed that the league shouldn't be their priority any more this term.
"It was a good draw. We wanted to win but you have to take what you can," said Courtois.
"For the confidence of the team it is important - that we can fight back against teams like Manchester United.
"If you see how many points we are behind the top four it is difficult so we have to try for the top 7 or 8 but the most important thing is the FA Cup and Champions League and to try and reach the final."
Chelsea face Manchester City at home in the FA Cup fifth round and Paris Saint-Germain in the last 16 of the Champions League later this month, with their season hinging on those games.
The Blues can still qualify for next season's Champions League by winning the competition for a second time in their history following their 2012 triumph.
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