Frank Lampard said it best before the Sunderland match; it was important for Chelsea to get a streak of wins in the festive period (or hectic due to the large number of matches played in little time) in order to lower the gap between them and leaders Arsenal, which is what Chelsea successfully did last night.
The Special One never lost a match while managing Chelsea in December, another statistic he and his "eggs" were determined to keep it as long as they could.
The Black Cats were seeking to preserve their 100% home record ever since former Chelsea player Gus Poyet took over from the sacked Di Canio, which probably why they almost successfully pulled off an upset for the Londoners.
Juan Mata's fans were happy to see him start again after an outstanding performance at the bridge at the weekend against The Saints.
The Blues - as expected - had much of the ball possession but nor real threats in front of Vito Mannone's goal, until the wake-up call came in, only this time, it wasn't after 14 seconds like what Southampton did 3 days earlier, it was after 14 minutes.
Jozi Altidore impersonated Didier Drogba brilliantly as he received a misfired ball with his back to John Terry, turned and swept the ball past Petr Cech while the Chelsea captain was still left analyzing what just happened in front of him.
Chelsea didn't take long to respond as one of their old guards stepped up again to rescue his boss and teammates. You guessed it, Frank Lampard. He levelled the scoreline with one of the easiest headers he'll ever take after an amazing cross from Eden Hazard, who arguably played his best match of the season. Eden, would later score two sublime goals and earn Chelsea their third away win of the season. And yes, Mourinho still hasn't lost in December while managing Chelsea.
But what really struck most was the fighting spirit and determination the Sunderland players had although they were clearly facing a more equipped side with solutions in every position on the field.
Poyet's 100% home record may have gone, but he promises to deliver some good performances and better results for the Sunderland Faithful.
With his experience as a former player and the young players at his disposal - Altidore, Borini, Giaccherini, and Johnson to name a few - we should expect great things in the later stages of this season. But yet again, we said the same thing when Di Canio took over last season. Will the Uruguayan emulate the Italian's ending at the Stadium of Light? The next few weeks shall reveal everything.
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