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LONDON. – Antonio Conte reckoned his high-flying Chelsea would enjoy a very merry Christmas after ensuring they would go into the festive period top of the English Premier League soccer table with a 10th straight victory on Wednesday night.Conte also challenged his Chelsea side to put clear water between themselves and the chasing Premier League pack by Christmas after their 10th successive victory at the Stadium of Light on Wednesday night.

Cesc Fabregas’s first-half goal at Sunderland’s Stadium of Light was enough to send the Blues six points clear of the chasing pack and even a slip up at Crystal Palace tomorrow would not stop them leading at Christmas.

This, as every Chelsea fan knows, is a pretty good omen because tradition has dictated that whenever they have led the English Premier League on December 25th – as they did in 2004, 2005, 2009 and 2014 – they have gone on to win the title.

“For sure, it’s a happy Christmas for us but we know that in this league there is danger and I prefer that my players don’t look at the table before the Crystal Palace game, a very tough game.

“It’s fantastic to win 10 games in a row in this league. It’s very tough in every game; you have to fight to the end to take three points and today was an example. – Reuters.