Chelsea captain John Terry believes that his side's 3-1 win against Manchester United is crucial as it keeps them "in touch" with the teams above them.

The Blues are now two points behind league leaders Arsenal and Terry has said that with the Gunners and Manchester City playing well, it was imperative that Chelsea stayed within touching distance by beating the Red Devils.

"In the first 15 minutes they were on top but we didn't panic, kept our shape and hit them on the counter-attack," Terry told BBC Sport.

"I said to [Samuel Eto'o] before the game that it was important for him to get a goal and he said he loves the big games.

"The other two (Arsenal and Manchester City) are looking very strong at the moment and it was important we kept in touch with them."

Chelsea have 49 points from 22 games.