Chelsea boss Antonio Conte labels possibility of points deduction a joke

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Diego Costa clinched a ninth successive Premier League win for Chelsea as manager Antonio Conte reacted to fears they could be deducted points for bad behaviour.

Reformed striker Costa scored his fifth goal in six games to beat West Bromwich Albion 1-0, then Conte insisted the team's unruly image has been consigned to history.

Chelsea and Manchester City were charged last week with failing to control their players after ugly scenes at the end of a game at the Etihad Stadium, when City's Sergio Aguero and Fernandinho were sent off. 

Antonio Conte has dismissed the possibility of Chelsea getting a points deduction

The Blues and Manchester City were both charged by the FA for failing to control their players

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The FA can deduct points from repeat offenders, and Chelsea had a long list of misdemeanours during Jose Mourinho's tenure.

The Premier League leaders are under threat of losing points for the Etihad skirmish, even though City were seen as the aggressors — but Conte was incredulous at the idea of a deduction.

He said: 'We had a bad record in the past but now we are different. Why must you pay if you are involved in a situation and the fault is not yours?

'Why? Are you joking? I don't know what happened in the past but I know what happened in the my players tried to keep calm. You could see this clearly. We are trying to improve in all aspects.'

Chelsea are closing on Arsenal's record of 13 successive victories in one season — or 14 over two separate seasons — with a trip to Sunderland on Wednesday, followed by games against Crystal Palace, Bournemouth and Stoke.

Conte (right) said: 'I'm not interested in the record. I'm interested in gaining three points in every game. It's important to play each game only thinking about winning. That means we can stay top of the table, fighting for something important.' 

Conte insists his players are no longer the bad boys of the Premier League

Victory was hard-won against an organised West Brom team and Chelsea's Italian boss admitted he was happier with this type of victory than the emphatic 5-0 win against Everton.

Conte said: 'Sometimes when you win easily, you can lose concentration, you can lose the attention and focus. This game was so difficult and I like to see my team fight in the same way like West Brom.

'It wasn't easy, but they showed me great character, great attention and great motivation to try to win.

'We faced a team who are very tough, a physical team who are difficult to break down. But I am pleased. We showed great maturity and patience to find the right solution to win.

Diego Costa jumps for joy after scoring the only goal of the game against West Brom

'I am pleased. Another clean sheet. Now it is important to think about the next game — at Sunderland — because we have only two days and it is important to be focused in this period, we have a lot of games.'

Costa believes his best football is yet to come. 'He feels he's in great form but not the best,' said his fellow Spaniard Cesc Fabregas, who relayed Costa's feelings in a post-match conversation with BT Sport.

'I wouldn't like to see his best because he's playing outstanding. But he says the best way to attack is to defend well and at the moment we're doing it. He feels the team is very compact.'