Antonio Conte felt his Chelsea side earned their victory over Hull City on Sunday.

The Blues had seen title rivals Liverpool lose to Swansea City, Manchester United draw at Stoke City, while Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur were involved in a 2-2 draw.

Arsenal leapt to second with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Burnley before Chelsea bot the job done with a 2-0 home triumph against the Tigers, which saw them take an eight-point lead over the Gunners.

Conte said of the result: "This game wasn't our best but I think that's normal because we are in the second part of the season and the points are important for us and the other team.

"They were important for Hull because they are in the relegation zone. We faced a good team with good organisation. They changed their system to play against us.

"After this weekend you can see that when I say this league is very difficult and no game is easy, that's the reality.

"A lot of our opponents dropped points. It's not easy to play the last game of the weekend and know the results of the other teams.

"In different aspects there was pressure on us. We had to exploit this weekend and it's not easy."

Goals from Diego Costa and Gary Cahill allowed the West Londoners to win for the 18th time in 22 league fixtures this term.