---
title: "Five-game win streak has Chelsea back on track"
canonical: "https://readchelsea.com/2017/11/21/five-game-win-streak-chelsea-back-track/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Michael Oliver"
section: "Chelsea Features & Analysis"
published: "2017-11-21T10:57:28Z"
modified: "2017-11-21T10:57:28Z"
---

# Five-game win streak has Chelsea back on track

Chelsea made it five league wins in a row with a 4-0 demolition of West Brom on Saturday and the victory suggested there might still be life in the title race. Man City remain nine points ahead of the Blues, but [Antonio Conte’s men](https://www.chelseafc.com/teams/first-team.html) are in superb form and will not give up their crown without a fight. They were utterly dominant against West Brom and are fast emerging as the team most likely to turn the Premiership into a two-horse race. If Eden Hazard, Alvaro Morata and N’Golo Kante continue to mine such rich veins of form they will eventually close the gap on Pep Guardiola’s marauding side.

Back-to-back defeats against Man City and then bottom club Crystal Palace in mid-October looked to have killed off Chelsea’s chances of retaining the title. Talk abounded of a club in crisis and Conte was said to be a dead man walking, with Roman Abramovich poised to pull the trigger. They have since gone on a magnificent run, beating Watford, Everton, Bournemouth, Everton, Man Utd and now West Brom. Chelsea are up to [third in the table](https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/premier-league/table), just a point behind Utd, and shaping up for a title tilt.

The Red Devils were buoyed by the return of Paul Pogba at the weekend and pulled off an emphatic victory of their own. But there are huge question marks over their lack of creativity and Mourinho’s negative tactics, and Chelsea look more likely to challenge City. It is a daunting task as the Citizens are still unbeaten, with a remarkable 11 wins and a draw from 12 games. They are playing football right out of the top drawer, with Kevin De Bruyne on fire and the forwards banging in goals with alarming regularity. But they may yet slip up. John Stones limped off with a hamstring injury and their suspect defence will be tested over a busy festive period.

Remaining injury free will be crucial to Chelsea’s chances of putting up a title challenge this season. The squad looks light and Kante’s absence was keenly felt in that defeat against Palace. If they can keep him in their engine room they will beat most teams as he is a dynamo, far more effective than Timoue Bakayoko. But the greatest asset could prove to be Hazard. The Belgian was absent with a broken leg at the start of the campaign and has taken a while to get match fit, but he looked back to his devastating best on Saturday. He had a run in with the Baggies crowd and responded in brutal fashion, fizzing in a shot that led to the first goal and banging in a brilliant brace to put West Brom to the sword. He was a constant threat, running at the West Brom defence at a blistering pace, and dragging the opposition all over the place with his intelligent movement. If he keeps it up he could even rival De Bruyne in the Player of the Year Stakes.

Check out [a review of BetOnline before placing action](https://www.sportsbookreview.com/best-sportsbooks/betonline/) and you will see that Man City are still overwhelming favourites to win the Premiership this season, but a flutter on Chelsea at 33/1 looks interesting. They were the best team in the league by a country mile last season and they look like returning to their best. If he keeps playing like he has over the past month, Morata will prove an upgrade on Diego Costa, while Bakayoko could still develop into a better player than Nemanja Matic. The rift with David Luiz appears to be over and Chelsea are well poised for a title challenge.