Mauricio Pochettino has told his Chelsea side to go out and prove that their attacking instincts that served them so well against Manchester United can propel them unexpectedly into the reckoning for European places.
With nine top-flight matches still to play the the west Londoners have already found the back of the net 15 more times than in the entirety of last season.
But having started the season with lead in boots – having fired blanks against Forest, Bournemouth and Villa – the team has been set free, Chelsea are now showing attacking flair, a verve that helped them overcome United 4-3 in Thursday’s classic.
And Pochettino wants his team to continue playing without fear.
“The quality is our philosophy,” said the Chelsea manager, who takes his team to Bramall Lane to face the league’s bottom side Sheffield United on Sunday.
“We are always thinking to go forward, to create chances. We are in the top four in the Premier League at creating big chances.
“It’s about philosophy. We see different clubs that try to get goals or chances through set-pieces, but we are Chelsea. We are a big club. A big club is about creating a philosophy to play good football, and play in the opposite half.
“It’s about ideas, about how we taste football. We have a lot of attempts in the last third. It’s why we get (so many) penalties. That is a good quality of the team, and of the football we want to apply here at Chelsea.”
Chelsea have forced themselves into the reckoning for European qualification off the back of their longest unbeaten league run in almost 18 months.
Despite not playing they climbed to ninth in the league on Saturday courtesy of Brighton’s 3-0 defeat to Arsenal.
They have games in hand which if won would see them overtake the two teams directly above them, Newcastle and West Ham, and draw to within two points of sixth-place Manchester United, who play Liverpool on Sunday.
Sixth is almost certain be a Europa League qualifying spot, though they could also reach the competition by winning the FA Cup.
Kick off is set for 5.30, stay here for all the team news, pre-match build-up and action.
Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
