Chelsea's Azpilicueta admits Premier League leaders 'feel the pressure'

Cesar Azpilicueta has admitted Chelsea's players "feel the pressure" of leading the Premier League title race.

Antonio Conte's side are in a commanding position ahead of the run-in, courtesy of a seven-point lead at the top of the table with just eight games left to play.

The Blues remain on course to win their fifth title of the modern era, having bounced back from a shock defeat to Crystal Palace by beating Manchester City in midweek.

READ MORE: Kante - Arsenal didn’t want me enough

READ MORE: Griezmann tired of transfer talk

But Chelsea's latest win coincided with Tottenham's stunning comeback at Swansea, which helped Mauricio Pochettino's side hang onto their rivals' coattails.

Spurs still harbour hopes of pipping Chelsea at the post and Azpilicueta has called on Conte's side to maintain their mental strength as the finishing line comes into sight.

“We feel the pressure because we know it’s one-month-and-a-half to finish the season," he told the Daily Star.

“We are in the best position to be and we were disappointed to lose three points at home against Crystal Palace.

"We played better than a lot of games that we won and we recovered and coped really well against City.

“I’m sure our rivals were waiting for us to drop that mental strength and drop points again.

READ MORE: Gossip - Alexis to give Arsenal one more chance? Marseille to swoop for THREE stars?

READ MORE: Fabian Delph desperate to stay at Manchester City

“So we showed our character - the fans, the team, the staff, we worked really hard when maybe it wasn’t our best game," added the Spaniard.

Conte has set his players a target of six wins from their remaining eight games in order to lift the trophy, which would see the club set a new record Premier League pints total.

The Blues travel to Bournemouth on Saturday night but could have had their lead cut to four points by the time they kick-off on the South Coast - if Spurs beat Watford earlier in the day.