Chelsea sink Stoke to secure top spot at Christmas

STOKE-ON-TRENT, Dec 23 (AFP): Chelsea ensured they will spend Christmas Day on top of the Premier League as goals from John Terry and Cesc Fabregas gave the leaders a gritty 2-0 victory at Stoke Monday.
It was not the most fluent performance from Jose Mourinho's side but, at a venue where Arsenal recently lost 3-2, it was the result and not the performance which mattered most and the Blues now sit three points clear of second placed Manchester City heading into the hectic festive programme.
City's win over Crystal Palace Saturday had drawn them level on points with Chelsea, but this was an emphatic response from the west Londoners as they bid to wrestle the title from the Eastlands outfit.
The only concern for Chelsea was a late injury to Belgium playmaker Eden, Hazard, who was replaced after getting a kick to his foot following a challenge by Jon Walters.
"These victories mean more than three points, to win and get three points the players need the right spirit and mentality," Mourinho said.
"To win here they must be a really very good team with the capacity to adapt to Stoke's style of play.