Antonio Conte admitted his surprise that Chelsea have gone on a nine-game winning streak to go three points clear at the top of the Premier League table.
The Blues head to bottom club Sunderland on Wednesday evening, as they look to go six points clear after second-placed Arsenal lost at Everton on Tuesday night.
Conte has benefited from the return to form of Eden Hazard and Diego Costa – two stars who were not at their best last season when Jose Mourinho was at the club. Both have already matched last season’s tally of goals after 15 league games.
“If I am honest, no. No [I couldn’t have imagined it]. Not because I don’t trust in my team. But I know this league, and this league is very tough,” he said on Tuesday, reports the Mirror.
“To win any game, you must [put] all [of] yourself into it. To have nine wins in a row is fantastic. I hope to continue this, but if you ask me if I hoped this, then yes. But I wasn’t sure.”
During those nine games, they have scored 22 goals and conceded just two – one of which was a Gary Cahill own goal – while keeping seven clean sheets along the way.
They face Crystal Palace in another London derby at the weekend, before two home games against Bournemouth and Stoke to end the year.
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