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Cahill insists Chelsea’s winning run is about points, not records

Gary Cahill says record-seeking Chelsea will be focused on winning at Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday and nothing else.
The Blues won for a 13th straight game on Saturday, beating Stoke 4-2 with Cahill nodding in the opener, and lead the Premier League by six points from Liverpool entering 2017.
And after equalling Arsenal’s single-season record, Antonio Conte’s men can draw level on the Gunners’ tally of 14 straight wins (across two seasons) with victory at White Hart Lane.
Cahill claims Chelsea’s record bid is not a topic for discussion among the squad and says it is imperative the players maintain the same approach which has proved so successful.
“We’re on a terrific run, but we realise it’s a game everyone’s going to be speaking about,” Cahill told Chelsea TV. “It’s not because it’s Tottenham that’s going to change in our preparation, the way we go about things.
“It’s going to be exactly the same and we expect exactly the same from each and every player come kick-off time and we’ll be okay.”
Chelsea’s only loss since the Sept. 24 defeat at Arsenal was in the EFL Cup at West Ham, with Tottenham among those sides dispatched in recent weeks. Spurs lost 2-1 to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in late November as part of a club record 10 wins in a row in all competitions for the Blues.
“It’s not been something we’ve spoken about,” Cahill added. “It’s not like all week we’ve been saying ‘we want this record, we want this record.’ We’ve just kept going. And I think that’s the right mentality to have.
“Being aware of the record and wanting to achieve them, there’s nothing wrong with that. For sure I want to achieve it. Every player wants to be a part of records — I’m not shy about saying that — but it’s not something we speak about.
“We just have to keep focused on the job that we’re doing. We’re getting this run and we’re getting this success through hard work and through everyone chipping in with their part in the game. That’s the mentality we should have. That shouldn’t change.”
Conte thinks teams will now have a greater incentive to beat Chelsea than just claiming three points. Willian, who scored twice against Stoke, agrees.
“We’re doing well. I think we have to continue in the same way,” Willian said. “[But] I think it will be more difficult to win because the other teams will come against us with more concentration.”


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