Frank Lampard hailed Timo Werner for an "unselfish" display as Chelsea beat Newcastle United 2-0 at St James' Park on Saturday.
Werner missed a number of chances and had a goal ruled out for offside on Tyneside, but the Germany international got a superb assist for Tammy Abraham to seal the win after an early own goal by Federico Fernandez.
Werner's second-half surge over the halfway line was the highlight of the match, and set the Blues on their way to a fifth straight win.
Lampard said: "He (Werner) had a couple of chances and some times it doesn't go in for you, but I thought he was a real threat for us throughout.
"You need players of that quality to wins game and the pace he travels with the ball is something special.
"He was so unselfish and you rely on those players who are top-class."
While Lampard is refusing to get carried away with his side's increasingly impressive run of form, he pointed to their defensive display as another reason why they may be in better shape to launch a title challenge.
"It's nice to be in the position we are, and to have gained confidence from the clean sheets, which were a problem for us earlier in this season and parts of last, but we need to keep working and be consistent," he said.
"The international break was challenging but we came here against a team we lost to last year, we dominated possession and we scored our goals, and we could have scored more."
Additional reporting by PA.
