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Jose
Mourinho has heaped praise on his "amazing" Chelsea team for beating Stoke
2-0 and pulling three points clear at the top of the Premier League.
An early header from John Terry sent Chelsea on their way to victory at the
Britannia Stadium on Monday night before Cesc Fabregas sealed the points on
77 minutes after a brilliant three-man move involving Eden Hazard and Diego
Costa.
The result puts clear daylight between Chelsea and Manchester City and
Mourinho could not speak highly enough of his squad afterwards.
"All of them were amazing," he said.
"Every one of them did their job perfectly. We made some changes to the
normal way of playing, to adapt to playing in such a difficult stadium.
"It was a fantastic performance. It was one of those matches where the
victory means more than just the three points. You can feel the right
spirit, the right atmosphere and what the players are ready to do; to try
and win the championship. I'm very pleased, as we won in one of the most
difficult places to win."
The last three times Chelsea have been top on Christmas Day, they went on to
win the Premier League while seven of the last 10 teams to lead the way on
December 25 have reigned supreme in May.
However, Mourinho was not interested in those statistics and was more
worried about a tough fixture list over Christmas that includes trips to
Southampton and Tottenham.
"What we did in the past isn't important," he said.
"This season, we have been top of the league since day one and we are there
because we are playing really well. We have been the best team, that's why
we are top of the league. Our Christmas fixtures are more difficult than any
other one.
"Three away matches at Stoke, Southampton and Tottenham, and one at home to
West Ham, who are doing amazingly well."