Winning Premier League title in first season with Chelsea would be my best achievement says Antonio Conte

The Blues lead Tottenham by four points ahead of a midweek round of fixtures that sees them host Southampton 24 hours before Mauricio Pochettino's men travel to Crystal Palace

Tuesday 25 April 2017 07:48 BST

Antonio Conte has Chelsea on the verge of the Premier League title (Getty)

Antonio Conte believes winning the Premier League title with Chelsea would be the biggest achievement of his managerial career.

The Blues lead nearest rivals Tottenham by four points ahead of a midweek round of fixtures that sees them host Southampton at Stamford Bridge 24 hours before Mauricio Pochettino's men travel to Selhurst Park to face Crystal Palace.

Despite a recent wobble including the defeat at Manchester United the psychological advantage is back with Conte's side after defeating Spurs 4-2 at Wembley in the FA Cup semi-finals last weekend.

Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Thibaut Courtois – 6 out of 10

Aside from the two Tottenham goals, the Belgian keeper made a handful of vital saves to keep his side in it.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Cesar Azpilicueta – 6 out of 10

Was getting dragged out of position at times, but overall it was a satisfying display. He tackled well and supported the midfielders in possession.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

David Luiz – 9 out of 10

His defensive display today was faultless. He tackled hard, led the line at the back and was creating moves from the back.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Nathan Ake – 7 out of 10

Today was a huge chance for Ake and he certainly performed under pressure. The only issue was that he was diving into challenges – resulting in a number of needless Tottenham free kicks.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Victor Moses – 8 out of 10

Was certainly one of Chelsea’s top players today. He was energetic, oozing with confidence and he won the penalty for Willian’s second goal.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

N’Golo Kante – 8 out of 10

A textbook Kante display. Energetic, powerful, clever and quite simply ran the midfield. He is the engine within the Chelsea side.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Nemanja Matic – 7 out of 10

His somewhat mediocre display was redeemed his sublime strike from distance in the late stages of the game.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Marcos Alonso – 6 out of 10

He looked dangerous pressing forward, but defensively he was clumsy and gave away a handful of unnecessary fouls.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Willian – 9 out of 10

He appeared to thrive on the pressure of his late introduction to the starting 11, with two goals. His free kick was an example of his endless talent.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Pedro – 6 out of 10

His pace proved problematic for Spurs, but he did not see enough of the ball in my opinion.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Michy Batshuayi – 6 out of 10

Hunted possession relentlessly and when he tracked back to defend a corner, he always the one to clear the danger.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Hugo Lloris – 4 out of 10

Should have arguably saved Willian’s free kick. Aside from that, it was hard for him to look impressive against such a clinical Chelsea side.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Kieran Trippier – 7 out of 10

He was particularly impressive today when he was pumping long balls over the top to Kane and Son from a defensive position.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Eric Dier – 6 out of 10

His work rate was faultless, he created moves going forward and he continued to pump balls into the danger zone.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Toby Alderweireld – 6 out of 10

Aside from giving away the free kick for Willian’s first goal, he performed well and tackled courageously for the full 90 minutes today.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Jan Vertonghen – 6 out of 10

He stood up well when Chelsea were attacking and he made a countless amount of blocks and interceptions.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Victor Wanyama – 6 out o f10

He passed the ball well and was using the width of the pitch well. Defensively there is certainly room for improvement.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Mousa Dembele – 7 out of 10

He patrolled the game from the middle of the pitch, used possession well and won a number of the aerial challenges.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Son Heung-min – 4 out of 10

His decision to slide tackle Moses inside of the area was simply imprudent. Was also very wasteful in possession.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Christian Eriksen – 8 out of 10

He created Kane’s opener and his assist for Alli’s goal will be one of the best that we can expect to see all season. Incredible.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Dele Alli – 8 out of 10

His equaliser for Spurs was an impressive strike, which he thoroughly deserved following a top display.

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Chelsea 4 Tottenham 2 player ratings

Harry Kane – 8 out of 10

His headed goal to level the scoring showed top technique from a tricky angle. Today he was energetic, alert and caused the Chelsea defence problems throughout.

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And asked if clinching the Premier League would be his best achievement Conte, a three-time Serie A winner, said: "Yes, for sure. For me, for the players, for the club. To win the title in England is a great achievement. To win in England these days is not easy.

"Now it's a good season. To become a great or fantastic season there is only one way: to try to win."

Conte made a veiled criticism of Manchester United and Manchester City on Monday, saying spending money does not guarantee success as both face a battle to finish in the top four.

Jose Mourinho's United bought Paul Pogba for a world record fee of £89million and Pep Guardiola's City made big outlays on players including £50m defender John Stones.

Chelsea were third in Premier League spending last summer but will point to their significantly smaller net spend, given they received big fees for players including £60m for Oscar in the last 12 months.

"This season it's very important to understand that it's not always about who spends more money who wins," Conte added.

"This season isn't the only season both Manchester clubs have spent a lot of money. Look at the past."

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