The situation is simple for Chelsea the rest of the way. Win one out of its last three matches and the Londoners will be Premier League champions for the sixth time in club history.
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The Blues drew one step closer to capturing England’s top flight on Monday after picking up a comfortable 3-0 win over Middlesbrough at Stamford Bridge.
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That leaves Chelsea with a seven-point advantage over second-place Tottenham with three matches remaining, and more than likely ensures that the Blues will be back on top of English soccer by season’s end.
Manager Antonio Conte praised his side following Monday’s win, stating the importance of finishing off the season strong, particularly after Spurs’ slip up against West Ham on Friday.
“I think this was important for us after the Tottenham defeat, the chance to take three points and make the gap seven points, it was very important to win,” Conte told Sky Sports.
“Honestly this is a big step because now there are three games and we need to win one to win the title. It is big and this is our answer to Tottenham because they won nine games and lost only one in their last 10 games.
“In this situation we showed a great will and desire to win the title. Now we are very close but we need to take another step.
“It’s important to win it ourselves, we have the possibility to win it and not wait for the Tottenham result. We must focus and prepare well and West Brom away won’t be easy.
“But we are in a good moment and with concentration and a good attitude we will try to win. For sure, a game against West Brom will be very tough.”
After a bit of trouble in the month of April, Chelsea has returned to its true form as of late with three consecutive PL wins and a date against Arsenal in the FA Cup final looming.
If Conte manages to guide the Blues to glory in 2016/17, it’ll be the manager’s stroke of genius that helped raise the team back on top of England.
Since the team’s worst defeat of the season in late September against Arsenal, Chelsea has lost just three of its last 29 PL matches.
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