Defence has been immense, says Cech

Petr Cech declared Chelsea are back to their bloody-minded best after they combined successive Premier League wins with clean sheets for the first time in more than a year.

The 1-0 victory at Norwich on St Stephen’s Day made it six points from six over the Christmas period for the European champions, and not since games against Wolves and Newcastle in November last year had Chelsea enjoyed back-to-back league wins and clean sheets at the same time.

That was simply unacceptable for goalkeeper Cech, who has spent most of his Stamford Bridge career playing behind one of the stingiest back fours around.