Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho played down the significance of his side’s seven-point lead after the victory over Aston Villa.
Title rivals Manchester City could only draw at home to Hull, courtesy of a late equaliser, which allowed the Blues to extend their advantage.
But Mourinho said City’s result showed the competitiveness of the Premier League and insisted he would would not be taking anything for granted.
He said: “In another country I would say it’s fantastic. In this country I would say it’s nothing.
“Every game is difficult, anything can happen. With 14 games left you are speaking about 42 points to play for, and we have a lead of seven.
“Am I surprised about City’s result? I am surprised with nothing in this country. Any team can take points.
“But when you are top of the league you don’t need the other teams to lose points. If they lose good, but we have to focus on ourselves.”
The win over Villa, earned by Branislav Ivanovic’s second-half strike, was Mourinho’s first at Villa Park in six attempts.
He admitted Paul Lambert’s strugglers were a stubborn opponent but felt his side were worthy of the three points.
Mourinho said: “Villa has one of the best squads – very good players, very good bench, lots of solutions. The stadium is fantastic and with their support it’s difficult.
“Apart from the first 15 minutes of the second half, I think we had good control of the game.
“We showed good ambition at 1-1, our second goal showed that. The left-back is in the box to cross and the right-back is in the box to finish.”
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This post was last modified on 08/02/2015