"If we win our game in hand, which is at home, then we would be right up there! So we have a good chance - it's in our hands, and I don't see why any of the other teams should have a better chance than us," the midfielder-cum-defender enthused on the club's official website.

"We've been through a bad phase for injuries, but it's hardly been mentioned. Yet when a team like Manchester United have a few missing, people will say straight away that they are not at full strength. But we are still getting the results, and we've proved that we are far more than just 11 first-choice players.

"We have a strong squad, and that's a sign of a team that will succeed," he added. "We are still driving on and we feel like it takes a lot to beat us. Being hard to beat is half the job done, and we are going to keep improving. Look at the top six or eight, they all keep losing the odd game and dropping points.

"We have a good squad, and that's why we are still competing strongly in three competitions. We've shown that even the injuries we've had don't seem to be too big a problem. There's always quality to step into the vacancy.