Gary Cahill has told his record-seeking Chelsea teammates to focus on the task in hand on Wednesday, winning at Tottenham and not equaling Arsenal’s record 14 straight wins with victory at White Hart Lane.
The Premier League leaders won for a 13th straight game on Saturday, beating Stoke 4-2, and lead the Liverpool by six points.
Cahill claims Chelsea’s record bid is not a topic for discussion among the squad and says it is imperative the players maintain the same approach which has served them well in their three-month unbeaten sequence.
‘We’re on a terrific run, but we realise it’s a game everyone’s going to be speaking about,’ Cahill told Chelsea TV.
‘It’s not because it’s Tottenham that’s going to change in our preparation, the way we go about things.
‘It’s going to be exactly the same and we expect exactly the same from each and every player come kick-off time and we’ll be okay.’
Chelsea’s only loss since the September 24 defeat at Arsenal was in the EFL Cup at West Ham, with Tottenham among those sides beaten in recent weeks.
Spurs lost 2-1 to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in late November as part of a club record 10 wins in a row in all competitions.
‘It’s not been something we’ve spoken about,’ Cahill added.
‘It’s not like all week we’ve been saying “we want this record, we want this record”.
‘We’ve just kept going. And I think that’s the right mentality to have.
‘Being aware of the record and wanting to achieve them, there’s nothing wrong with that. For sure I want to achieve it.
‘Every player wants to be a part of records – I’m not shy about saying that – but it’s not something we speak about. We just have to keep focused on the job that we’re doing.
‘We’re getting this run and we’re getting this success through hard work and through everyone chipping in with their part in the game. That’s the mentality we should have. That shouldn’t change.’
