"Of course we are up for it." That was the message from Noni Madueke when asked about Chelsea's role in the Premier League title race. An emphatic rallying cry from the 22-year-old, who was awarded Player of the Match for his performance in the 5-1 win at Southampton on Wednesday.
"Whether we are in it or not is a different question," Madueke continued on the title race. "However, we are taking every game as it comes. We are trying to progress and trying to get better. We are focusing on ourselves, really, and really trying to improve.
"We won 5-1 today, and in the dressing room we are very happy with that, but we also know that we can be a lot better. It's really focusing on us, focusing on training and trying to improve."
The win for Chelsea means they are now seven points behind Liverpool, who conceded a late goal at Newcastle United. The Reds went into this round of fixtures nine points clear of the Blues and Arsenal but the gap has been reduced to seven with the fixtures coming thick and fast.
Manchester City, meanwhile, ended their seven-match winless run on Wednesday night, beating Nottingham Forest 3-0 at the Etihad Stadium. Last season's champions are still well in this title race - sitting two points below Chelsea and Arsenal - with previous years demonstrating that you can never rule out Pep Guardiola's team.
Chelsea, though, who Enzo Maresca has continuously insisted are not in this season's title race, are playing some excellent attacking football at the moment. With 31 goals in their opening 14 Premier League matches, no team has scored as many as the Blues.
While the results are certainly more positive this season, Madueke is not too surprised by what is happening with Chelsea right now. He feels that it has been a long time coming but credits Maresca and his ideas for helping finally unlock this exciting Chelsea side.
"I wouldn't say it [confidence] hasn't been there for a while, but I would say the results are reflecting our performances more," Madueke said at St. Mary's. "I feel like we look like a more serious team in a lot of the games this season, a team that is there to really put teams away and win games comfortably. We are really happy with the progress we have made and we know we can go up a few more gears as well."
"I just feel it's young players a year older, a year's more Premier League experience and obviously, a great coach with great ideas. The team was very talented a year ago, so I don't feel like this form should be so surprising, but at the same time it's credit to the manager and to the players."
Next up for Chelsea is the short trip to Tottenham in the Premier League. It is always a game that means more to Blues supporters and with the hope they can keep tabs in the title race - this particular fixture is even more significant.