Estevao Willian’s injury-time winner earned Chelsea a 2-1 win against the reigning champions, and few could argue with the outcome as we refused to settle for a point as the contest drew to a close.

James was proud of the team’s display and the manner in which we responded to Liverpool’s goal on the hour.

‘It was a great game,’ said the skipper.

‘We started well and continued like that throughout. When they got the equaliser we weren’t down, we came back fighting and managed to get a goal late on.

‘There’s always extra fire when we’re playing against one of the bigger teams. From minute one the stadium and the team were fired up.

‘We’re hungry to win. We felt the game was there for us. We showed fight and energy to get the winner. There was no holding back.’

When Benoit Badiashile had to be withdrawn during the second half, James moved into the heart of defence. He quickly looked right at home in what he admitted was a fresh challenge.

‘I didn’t expect to play centre-back, it’s one of the positions I’ve never played before!

‘It’s high-level football, I had to adapt and play the best football I could. At the moment I’m close to my best.’

James praised the impact all our second-half substitutes made and it was one of those, Estevao Willian, who made the telling difference late on.

The captain wants to see the Blues use this result as a springboard for the rest of the campaign.

‘We need to keep on building throughout the season. Red cards have played a part in recent results, and we’re in a difficult moment with the amount of players we have out. That’s football and we have to adapt and play the best we can with what we have. We did that.

‘It’s a big step in the right direction. We’ve beaten the champions. It was a big statement and hopefully we can build on this now.’