Chelsea

Eden Hazard: 'Stamford Bridge holds fear factor for visiting teams'

By Barney Corkhill, Editor | 22 February 2017

Chelsea winger Eden Hazard believes that his side's home form this season gives them an edge over visiting teams before the match has even begun.

Chelsea winger Eden Hazard has claimed that some teams are beaten before the game even kicks off when they visit Stamford Bridge.

Antonio Conte's side have won 11 consecutive matches in front of their own fans across all competitions and 14 of 15 this season, with the only exception being a defeat to Liverpool on September 16.

Such relentless form has helped them to build an eight-point gap at the top of the Premier League table, and Hazard insists that his side are always confident of winning when they are playing at the Bridge.

"Yes, it's significant. It's difficult for the opponent to come here and win games. Do I get that feeling that some teams are beaten before kickoff? Yes. We are playing better than last season. It's a little like two years ago when we won the league," he told the London Evening Standard.

"I remember the second part of the season back then - sometimes the team didn't play well, but we always scored at least one goal and Thibaut Courtois would make at least one good save, like against Arsenal. We are in full confidence here on this pitch. You know the fans bring everything, they support us. I remember against Tottenham (the 2-1 win) earlier in the season when they scored, but the supporters kept going, they kept singing.

"It's great and we feel very good on this pitch. We know everything can happen in football, but we have self-belief and that is very important in football. We just need to keep the same concentration. It's more difficult to play away because of the fans, but we are ready, we are professional. We can deal with the pressure. Everything is going good.

"We know if we want to be champions, in our home stadium we have to win most of our games. We can't say all 19 because we have already lost to Liverpool, but we have to win 16 to 17 because it is our place and we are ready to deliver."

Chelsea will host relegation-threatened Swansea City on Saturday looking to maintain their winning run.