Frank Lampard has warned his Chelsea players not to get carried away by climbing to third in the Premier League and stretching their unbeaten streak to 11 games.
Chelsea thrashed Sheffield United 4-1 at Stamford Bridge to push within one point of the top of the league, with Tammy Abraham, Ben Chilwell, Thiago Silva and Timo Werner all on target.
David McGoldrick flicked the Blades into an early lead but Lampard's new-look Chelsea are building their resolve - and hit back in style to thump Chris Wilder's side.
Lampard's men have only lost once this term, with the £220million summer recruitment drive starting to bear fruit - but the Blues boss has told his squad not to think they have cracked the Premier League code.
Lampard insisted Chelsea are yet to close the gap on recent Premier League powerhouses Liverpool and Manchester City, and will keep reiterating that to his players.
'That was our best performance of the season so far for sure,' said Lampard.
'We're in a good place, but the level of Liverpool and Manchester City means you have to be in that good place every week.
'That's the gap we have to close so I won't get carried away with that.'
Brazil stalwart Silva bagged his first Chelsea goal, and captained the Blues for the first time, following his summer free-transfer switch from Paris St Germain.
At 36 the centre-back appears as fresh as ever and in top form, leaving Lampard greatly impressed by his immediate impact at Stamford Bridge.
'I knew the player he was when he came here, because of the career he's had,' said Lampard.
'It's his level of performance since he's been here; his influence on the group, his persona, his preparation between games, how he attacks training, how diligently he looks at opposition.
'He's been brilliant, I can't say enough about him today.
'He's had a big influence in the short time he's been here.
'The way he manages himself in between games, I'm very open to making sure we keep him as fresh as possible.
'He is fit, he's fresh and it's rubbing off on others around him.'
Blades boss Wilder believes Silva's goal should have been disallowed, for a block in the area in the build-up to the Brazil defender's header.
Wilder insisted his players must quickly learn the 'dark arts' to find their feet in their second season in the Premier League.
'We were still in the game going up to 75 minutes, but then we got done on a block on the corner,' said Wilder.
'For my team it's a right difficult situation. At times maybe I'm a bit naive and we're not being good at the dark arts.
'It's a real predicament that I'm in as a manager at the moment.
'That's not decided the game because they were better than us, with world-class players that are playing at the top of the game.
'But there's a block in the penalty area and then he scores with a header.
'We're in the game at 2-1 and we're out of it at 4-1.
'The players have to pick themselves up together, they've been shaken up a little. It's been a tough run.
'I thought Chelsea were outstanding. What a job Frank Lampard's done, in his second year.'
chelseaforlife1234
626
Finally some competition to De bruyne in the assist department. Can't wait to see who gets more this season. Go bluess💙💙💙💙
DOIT500
549
Hakim ziyech is the Lost Fabrigas Chelsea have been searching for...
GodwinzJ
391
what you ordered verses what you got...
Capitalox
257
Meanwhile this was found this morning at Stamford bridge following yesterday’s rain of shots on Sheffield Utd keeper. Someone should please call him to come collect his lost gloves 😂😂😂
jonathanchipeta
244
History historical moment
Andy_Mac
235
The post-international break period is gonna determine where we stand this season. Games will come thick and fast. We will require contributions from everyone in the squad for different games. The likes of Gilmour, Callum, Havertz, Azpilicueta, Rüdiger, Christensen, Pulisic, etc who haven't been playing many games this season will be required during the late November/December period as rotation is imminent. The next challenge for Chelsea is to prove that they can handle this period successfully even with second choice options. Lampard will need to rotate the squad wisely. The sooner we can secure 1st place in our UCL group stage, the better it would be to rest critical players. Let's try to win against Rennes and Sevilla in the group stage and maybe then rest some players in the final match vs Krasnodar. We'll have to earn that luxury. The games in December especially will be very testing (Sevilla, Leeds United, Arsenal, Everton, Wolves, West Ham and Aston Villa). If we overcome this period without dropping points much, that will put us in pole position to win the PL title and maybe get an easier draw in the Round of 16. Good luck Chelsea 💙
larryboss
229
thiago Silva was very happy to play for Chelsea see how he celebrates yesterday
RROCKSTAR
72
Now Chelsea are interested in the league
Likedechelsea
66
I always tell children to stay away from fire😪😪😪
MasterFlame
55
Well Chelsea are doing their best to win the league! 👍
SH2008
41
chelsea can CHILL WELL and DRINK WATER
Auguerooooooo
26
Yes guys. Stay humble. We have only beaten a team who is at the bottom of the table. So stay focused and keep the streak going. KTBFFH