Nasri targets title decider

Samir Nasri wants Manchester United to carry on winning to set up a title showdown with Manchester City at the end of next month.

Nasri has struggled to fulfil his potential at times since a £24million summer move from Arsenal, but he came good by scoring the winner in a thrilling 2-1 victory over Chelsea on Wednesday. With nine games left, the Blues are now a single point behind their rivals, with a title decider against United at the Etihad Stadium on April 30 on the cards.

"You know what, I hope they win all their games and that we win all of ours, so we can play a 'final' here," the midfielder said.

Nasri added: "It would be fantastic for the fans, and for us as well.

"United will be there until the end - they have the experience, they have a manager who has won everything for 25 years. Even if I said I hope they will lose, sometimes you have to be realistic.

"They don't have any really difficult games and it's not good to lie; they will not lose seven of their last nine games. But what we did against Chelsea is a signal to United that we are here and we will be here until the end."

Carlos Tevez made a big contribution on his return to the team as a substitute against Chelsea. The controversial Argentina star has still not been fully forgiven by some supporters for storming out of the club after the furious row that erupted between himself and manager Roberto Mancini in Munich.

Yet there has always been a suspicion that Tevez could end up being one of the pivotal figures in this season's title race. Given 24 minutes on his comeback to make an impact as City trailed and threatened to fall four points adrift, Tevez answered the call by setting up Nasri for the winner.

"We already knew what Carlos could bring," said Nasri.

"Since he came back to training he has shown great spirit and focus. He is a great player, one of the best and when he is 100%, he is really hard to stop. The assist will give him confidence because it's not easy to come back after six months without playing a game. He played two games for the reserves, but that's not the same."