Back on top: Chelsea clinches 2nd Premier League title in 3 seasons
Chelsea's enjoying the luxury of securing a Premier League title with matches to spare after edging past West Bromwich Albion with a late 1-0 victory at The Hawthorns on Friday.
Related - Watch: Unlikely hero Batshuayi scores goal to clinch title for Chelsea
The triumph marks the second time Chelsea has finished atop the standings in three seasons - its fifth title in 13 years - and means Antonio Conte follows Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti, and Manuel Pellegrini in claiming the top gong in his maiden Premier League term as boss. Not a bad feat, especially considering he was jostling for position with the most famed and decorated legion of managers the division has seen.
The Blues' pursuit bore the traits of their overseer Conte - hard work, canniness, and, quite simply, an insatiable desire to win - and reduced last season's 10th-placed finish to a mere blip in the history books. Over the campaign, Conte's tactical luminosity forced even his most stubborn managerial contemporaries in England back to the drawing board.
4 - Antonio Conte has won the league title in 4 successive seasons as a club coach (also won Serie A in 11-12, 12-13 & 13-14). Mastermind. pic.twitter.com/yGWdRgBUJB
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) May 12, 2017
In the West Midlands, Conte came up against one of the elder statesmen in the division in Tony Pulis, and the Welshman laid out a characteristically defensive setup. Chelsea toiled, trying to devise ways to break up the Baggies, and in the end it took an intervention from substitute Michy Batshuayi - a bench-warmer for much of the term - on 82 minutes to nick the three points required.
The result put Chelsea out of Tottenham Hotspur's reach, despite its north London rival still having three matches to play. Conte's ranks, meanwhile, can enjoy entertaining their fans at Stamford Bridge against Watford and Sunderland knowing the title is already theirs.
Related: 3 defining moments from Chelsea's dominant season
In the end, it was a rather straightforward run for Chelsea to be crowned Premier League champion. Its rivals have plenty of hard work ahead if they are to close the gulf in class between them and the club at the summit of English football.