Loeb says he can't afford more errors

The reigning champion missed out on an opportunity to overhaul Marcus Gronholm in the title race when he crashed in Japan after the Finn had done the same, although Loeb feels that the dramatic event has simply left him in the same position as before.

"When Marcus retired, we had a chance of scoring a good result in Japan but we let it slip from our grasp," said the Frenchman. "We can't afford to miss the next one.

"The result in Japan leaves in the same situation we have been in for some events now: we've absolutely got to win. Before, we needed to win five rallies, now we need to win the next two."

Loeb, who is currently four points behind the Ford driver, believes that winning in Ireland this weekend is his only option if he wants to keep his title hopes alive heading into the finale in Wales.

"We have no alternative but to win," he added. "We're still very much in with a shout, but we have very little margin for manoeuvre.

"Citroen's experience of asphalt and the C4 WRC's proven competitiveness on sealed surfaces should help us, and I hope Dani (Sordo) succeeds in finishing ahead of Marcus."

Citroen have taken both of their drivers to Ireland for national events during the year, and Sordo is hoping that his experience will enable him to put pressure on Gronholm.

"I enjoyed my first taste of the Irish stages, and I'm not expecting these ones to be easy," said the Spaniard. "I hope we can help Sebastien by finishing ahead of Marcus.

"That said, we saw in Corsica that Marcus is very quick on asphalt, so my role will perhaps be to put as much pressure on him as I can."