Last ditch triple sinks Derby

'I enjoy playing with Gian-franco. We know each other's game so well that when we're on the pitch, we only have to look at each other. We have a great partnership and under-standing, especially when we're going forward.'

'Just to watch him in training is fantastic and if every player had the chance to train with him, they would learn so much.

'People who like to watch good football like watching him play because he's pure quality. I think we'll have to go to his house and try to persuade his wife to stay!'

The demolition of Derby kept alive Chelsea's hopes of qualifying for Europe. For much of this campaign, it has seemed that the only opportunity for most of their players to go to the continent would be when they return to their homeland in the summer.

Poyet said: 'Europe is our motivation now. I don't want to say we're dreaming of the Champions League because I think realistically we're thinking about finishing in fourth position.

'Thinking about Chelsea without Europe next season would be very hard for everyone. After getting to the Champions League quarter-finals last season, I can't believe what we did this year.

'Watching Liverpool against Barcelona

on television was really hard because we were there last year. Europe means so much to us but I really think we've got a chance now.'

To cap a superb day for Chelsea, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink became the first Blues player since Kerry Dixon more than a decade ago to score 20 goals in a season.

On the other hand, Derby were so bad that their best player was goalkeeper Mart Poom, even though he had to pick the ball out of his net four times.

After appearing to have pulled themselves away from the relegation dogfight, woeful performances against Coventry City and Chelsea on successive Saturdays have left County dangerously close to the bottom three.

Derby captain Darryl Powell said: 'We still need two results but if we can get four points from our games against West Ham and Leicester over Easter, the teams below us will have to do a hell of a lot to overhaul us.

'Next weekend is huge for us. West Ham are in a similar position to us, and both they and Leicester haven't been going well of late.

'We've got to concentrate on keeping control of our own destiny. I think it will take 39 or possibly 40 points, and I would rather be in our position than Middlesbrough's. We are still almost safe.'

Derby boss Jim Smith praised Chelsea's 'outstanding' performance saying: 'We had to put a little more attacking into it in the second half and it opened it up a bit. Chelsea took advantage of that.'

Smith was left to rue Adam Murray's early miss with the game still goalless. Murray failed to sidefoot the simplest of chances home from Paul Boertien's left-wing cross and Smith admitted: 'We needed to get that goal. It was a gilt-edged chance and you can't afford to miss them against teams like Chelsea.'