Antonio Conte does not expect Tottenham and Chelsea’s title race battle to end anytime soon but underlined the need for his players to& only focus on themselves.
Goals from Eden Hazard, Gary Cahill and a brace from Diego Costa to see the Blues run out 4-2 winners over Southampton on Tuesday and re-establish a seven-point lead over their title rivals.
Cahill and Hazard spoke after the game of the importance of playing before Spurs, who travel to Crystal Palace on Tuesday, having kicked-off second in recent weeks.
But Conte is keen to concentrate on only his own team, though predicts the battle between the two London teams will run until the end of the season.
“It’s important for us to look at ourselves, these are the most important things,” the Chelsea manager told Sky Sports.
“This race will continue until the end of the [season]. We must be ready and to prepare for the next game as we look at ourselves and not the others.”
Conte was happy with the display, a second 4-2 win in four days after Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final triumph over Tottenham.
Hazard and Costa were dropped from the starting line-up for the Wembley clash, and Conte noted how his tactical decisions in both games were redeemed after the pair scored at Stamford Bridge.
Conte said: “It was a good win and I think today I have to be pleased for a great effort, a fantastic effort from my players. It wasn’t easy to play after a tough game against Tottenham/
“It shows my choices were right for the game against Tottenham and for the game against Southampton.
“It’s not easy for the coach to take this responsibility, to make these strong choices, but I have to be pleased because I have a squad of great men and good players.”
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