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Claudio Raineri

LEICESTER manager Claudio Ranieri insists the Premier League title race is not a straight fight between his side and Tottenham.

The Foxes are five points clear at the top with eight games left after beating Newcastle 1-0 on Monday.

Tottenham lie second, with Arsenal 11 points behind the leaders and fourth-placed Manchester City 12 off the pace.

Asked if only Leicester or Spurs could be champions, Italian Ranieri, 64, responded: “No, the race is open.”

He added: “There are so many people who are dreaming, but we have to continue to work hard.

“I want to fight every match. Now our concentration is about Crystal Palace, another difficult match. We will go to battle there.”

The Foxes need 20 points from their last eight games to win the title.

Former Leicester midfielder Robbie Savage thinks his old club will come out on top and has written off the chances of Arsenal and Manchester City.

“It’s ridiculous to think of Leicester being so far ahead,” he told BBC Radio 5 live. “It’s a two-horse race, no doubt about it.

“You can’t rule out Spurs, but City and Arsenal have no chance of winning it now. You can’t see them winning four or five in a row.”

Former Wales international Savage said the current Foxes team was better than the one he played in under Martin O’Neill.

That side won the League Cup in 1997 and 2000, securing qualification for the now defunct Uefa Cup.

They also finished in the Premier League’s top 10 for four straight seasons from 1997 to 2000.

“This team is easily better,” said Savage of the current side. “If they win it, I believe this is the greatest football achievement we’ve ever seen.”

It has been rare in the Premier League era for a team to have such a big lead in the closing stages of the season and not win the title.

In 1997-98, Manchester United were six points clear of eventual champions Arsenal after they had played 33 games, but the Gunners had three games in hand.

Four years ago, Sir Alex Ferguson’s team lost an eight-point cushion to Manchester City in the final six games of the season.

Two seasons ago, Liverpool were five points clear of second-placed Chelsea with three games to play only for Manchester City to win the title. — BBC Sport