Graeme Le Saux: Chelsea victory was one of their finest of the season

Following Chelsea's victory at Stamford Bridge against Man Utd last week, Graeme Le Saux looks back on all the action and the Premier League title race...

Chelsea answered critics resoundingly
The multitude of concerns that I mentioned in my column last week surrounding Chelsea were resoundingly dealt with on Sunday against Man Utd. Along with the Champions League encounter in Madrid, it was one of their performances of the season. I think the balance they had in midfield was perfect, the trifecta of Kante, Fabregas and Bakayoko was set up in direct contrast to that of Matic, Hererra and Mkhitaryan.

Does midfield dominance justify Matic sale?
In terms of whether that victory justifies the decision to sell Matic, I really think it depends on what system Antonio Conte chooses to play. Bakayoko is definitely more versatile, he can play further forward and if he can add more goals to his game then he'll be hugely valuable. Equally there will be games this season when they'll need to play with more structure defensively but remember they do have Drinkwater now to line up alongside Kante.

Luiz must respond positively
The manager said the decision to leave him out was tactical but we've all seen how David Luiz has been playing recently and he's been going through a real dip in form. The problem for Antonio Conte, when making a decision such as this, is that it's made in public so if there has been a falling out, it's very hard to contain the issue. Vitally, Luiz will have to react positively, impress in training and work harder than anyone else because if you throw your toys out of the pram, the only person it's going to affect is you.

City on front foot but Chelsea close behind
I think at the moment we're all waiting for which team is going to be the second most consistent behind Manchester City. We've seen United regress somewhat from the open style of play they began the season with; they've now almost gone back to their default defense oriented way of playing which clearly didn't work for them against Chelsea.

I think the Blues still have the edge over them in that they're still trying to play creatively and through the pitch; you can say the same for Spurs. Most importantly for all these sides is clocking up as many points as they can over the next four weeks as the busy Christmas schedule and the suspensions & injuries that come as a result can define your season.