RAFAEL BENITEZ called for his team to stay “calm” and claimed Liverpool remain firmly in the title race despite succumbing for the third time in the Premier League this season yesterday to slip six points behind Chelsea at the top of the table.

No side has lost three of its opening eight league games and gone on to win the title since Manchester United some 42 years ago, though Benitez cited the points dropped by the top four to Burnley, Sunderland and Wigan as evidence that the league will be tighter this term.

Yet Liverpool were five points better off this time last year and, having already been beaten by Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa, have now lost more games this campaign than last.

“It’s important to keep calm, to keep working and improving,” said Benitez. “We came up against a good team who have been doing well today, so we have to focus on the next game.

“But this year the top sides will lose points against the other teams. That’s good for the Premier League and for the competition but the main thing is that it means you have to keep going. We can’t think about the three defeats. We have to try and improve and do better against Sunderland [on Saturday week].

“We lost only two matches last season but people were always telling me about the number of draws [11] we had. Now we’re winning more and losing a few more but maybe we’ll have more points in the end.

“It’s more difficult to convince the press [that we can still win the league] but I’ll try to convince my players: one game at a time, it’s the only way to improve. It’s a long race. Chelsea are very strong but we’ll try to stay as close as possible and see what happens in April and May.”

Carlo Ancelotti echoed that need for a sense of realism having overseen this team’s first league win at Stamford Bridge over one of the established top four since the season before last to ensure they enter the international break two points clear at the top.

“The end of the championship is still very distant,” he said. “But this was an important victory, for sure, because it was three points against a very good team. So I’m happy.”

The memory of the defeat by Wigan and the stodgy display in beating Apoel Nicosia last week appears to have been exorcised. Didier Drogba conceded it had been “important” to inflict damage on a direct rival for the title and the goalkeeper Henrique Hilario recognised the significance of maintaining home form.

“In the last couple of seasons we’ve dropped points at home and lost the title because of that, so it was important,” said the Portuguese player. “To be top going into the international break is perfect.”

Ancelotti laughed off suggestions that this had been a fine end to a difficult week. In Italy we say: ‘It’s the same the world over’,” said the Chelsea manager when asked about criticism of the side’s displays last week.

“It was not pressure. We lost one game and played badly for a second match but we worked hard to find the problem and resolve it. After this match we’ve shown we’ve resolved our problem. It was not a big problem.

“Now our aim is to end the season having lost only one game and we’ve lost that already. Manchester United’s result [against Sunderland] was a surprise, for sure, but we want to concentrate on our own season, not other teams’ seasons.

“This season depends only on us. We’re top of the table and we prepare for the next games with concentration and determination. Our season depends only upon us.”

• Guardian Service

Top of the table

PWDLFAPts

Chelsea 870118621

Man Utd 861119819

Tottenham 8512191216

Arsenal 7502241015

Liverpool 8503221215

Man City 650114715

Sunderland 8413161313

Aston Villa 64029512

Burnley 840471612