If Chelsea dominate the defence on the field, then the credit must go to their versatile defender Branislav Ivanovic.
Ivanovic is close to completing seven years at Stamford Bridge, and the 30-year-old, who has 276 Chelsea appearances and 27 goals to his name, finds it hard to believe how time flew.
The Serbian has been impressive for table-toppers Chelsea in this season of the Premier League, finding the back of the net in consecutive games against Burnley and Everton - a feat for any defender.
Speaking to IBNLiveSports, Ivanovic acknowledged the importance of his attacking contribution and the role of new signings Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas.
Such an amazing start for Chelsea. How will you describe it?
To score goals is a great feeling, of course, but it's the beginning of the season and we still have a lot of things to do. It is all team effort and a positive effort in every game. We have the quality here and the way we are working every day on passing is improving the movement.
You will be completing 7 years at Stamford Bridge. How's it been at Stamford Bridge?
It has been amazing, but the time has gone so quickly for me - I can't believe it has been almost seven years since I joined Chelsea. I think it is a little bit early to speak about 'my career', but definitely my best years I am playing in Chelsea - seven years is not a short period, so I am happy about that.
You are a Serbian. Did you face any problem adapting to the English lifestyle?
I really enjoy it here and I am so happy about this part of my life. In your personal and family life, it is very important to have peace and I am really enjoying the moment. Everyone complains about the weather here but, for me, it is fine. In Serbia, it is cold in January and February, so it is fine for me here. I am settled here and I feel very good, very proud, to be part of Chelsea Football Club, and to be part of this team. I play with great players and we always have the same motivation, which is to win trophies - that is what we want to achieve.
After the departure of experienced Frank Lampard and David Luis, how do you see Chelsea now?
Well, Lampard is a veteran. His presence on the field was itself a morale booster for the team. Now, we have a different team. Cesc, Costa, Remy and Felipe are here now. We have an incredible captain in [John] Terry. We look at our squad and see that we have enough quality and good enough players to do this, so we have to keep focused and we have to give to our supporters and our club something that will make a difference - and that is trophies. Now I feel more freedom, more confidence, and the way we are training, the way we are preparing for games and the way things are inside the club make you feel 100 per cent better and you feel you are improving all the time with these players and everything we have here.
Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa have acclimatised pretty quickly at Blues. Your comments on this.
Both Cesc and Costa are amazing. They have given Blues an incredible start this season. It is really amazing how quickly the new players have adapted. You could see straight from the first day how they work, how well they do their jobs, and that it is normal for them to play this way. That is why they are here and we are all very happy about that. As this group stays together for a long time, we will get better and better - we know each other's games, we know the movement of each other and this gives us the opportunity to play more easily in games. Sometimes we work on special things in preparation for a game, and this is one thing, but it is another to understand your team-mates, to know how they work and what they like on the pitch.
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