LONDON (AP) – Willian scored twice as leader Chelsea overcame Stoke 4-2 to equal an English Premier League record for 13 straight wins in a single season.
Bruno Martins Indi and Peter Crouch struck for Stoke to cancel out goals by Gary Cahill and Willian. But Willian struck for a second time moments after Crouch’s 64th-minute equalizer and Diego Costa netted a fourth.
Chelsea held a nine-point lead over Liverpool, which hosted Manchester City on Saturday night.
Arsenal was the last team to win 13 matches in a row in a solitary campaign in 2002. The Gunners extended that landmark to 14 the following season and Chelsea can match that streak at Tottenham on Wednesday.
Chelsea’s defense will have to be tighter at White Hart Lane. Saturday’s win was the first time Chelsea conceded more than one goal in a game since the Sept. 24 loss at Arsenal.