'I play with serenity' - Giroud revelling in Chelsea form as he praises Leeds

Olivier Giroud says he is “playing with serenity” after he continued his fine goalscoring form in Chelsea’s 3-1 win against Leeds.

The France striker now has six goals in his last four appearances for the Blues after his 27th-minute strike cancelled out Patrick Bamford’s early opener for Leeds at Stamford Bridge.

It was his first Premier League start of the season having retained his place in the side after scoring all four goals in the midweek Champions League win at Sevilla.

Stretching back into the last campaign, Giroud has now scored in his last six Premier League starts for Chelsea, the first player to do so since October 2001 and at 34 years and 66 days, is the oldest player to achieve such a feat in Premier League history.

Having also netted a last minute winner in the 2-1 victory at Rennes the previous week, Giroud admits he is full of confidence right now.

"I feel good and confident. I play with serenity,” he told Sky Sports. “I had the opportunity to score again today and help the team.

“I am happy for the squad and the staff. We work hard in training. We have faith in our gameplan and get better and better. The confidence is here and we want to keep that."

Second half goals from Kurt Zouma and Christian Pulisic sealed the win for Frank Lampard’s side and was enough to send them top of the table, though they were made to work hard against a Leeds side who have won plenty of plaudits since returning to the top flight this season.

Giroud was certainly impressed by Marcelo Bielsa’s side, though he was delighted to get the win for the 2,000 Chelsea fans, who were watching live inside Stamford Bridge for the first time since March following a relaxation of UK government coronavirus restrictions.

"We really wanted to win for [the fans] and carry on the good momentum,” he added. “Honestly, we were not surprised to face this team because we knew their qualities.

"We conceded early and wanted to bounce back straight away. [Leeds] were one of the best teams I have faced since a few months. Physically they run everywhere. It was so hard. It's a great feeling to win tonight and they drew against Man City and lost just to Liverpool. They really impress me. They are a good team.”