The Belgian grabbed the only goal of the game at the Etihad Stadium with a wonderful solo effort, which earned City a 12th successive Premier League win.
Crucially, it also extended our lead at the top of the table to 13 points ahead of Liverpool’s fixture with Brentford on Sunday afternoon.
And while De Bruyne insists City can’t take our foot off the peddle, he believes our latest Premier League triumph could prove vital in the title race.
“It is a significant moment for us and it keeps our run going,” he reflected.
“In big games it is important to get as many points as possible.
“We have done that very well this year, so we just need to keep going, work hard and try to win the games.”
City were full value for the three points, limiting the visitors to a single shot on target at the Etihad Stadium.
Nevertheless, Guardiola’s men had to be patient in our search of the breakthrough, with De Bruyne’s match-winning contribution coming with just 20 minutes to play.
And the Belgian was proud of how he and his teammates ultimately saw out the result.
“Sometimes it is [difficult], but I think we do better year by year,” De Bruyne said of City’s patience against Chelsea.
“I think the second half was a little bit too open sometimes and then it makes it really difficult to control the game.
“But we didn’t give too much away, maybe a little bit at the beginning, but the team did very well in that aspect.”
Although De Bruyne feels our victory over Chelsea could prove significant, he insists that this season’s title race is far from over.
Instead, the Belgian has called for City to maintain that level of performance in the coming weeks and not get distracted by the plaudits that follow.
He said: “Let’s hope we do the same next week (against Southampton). I know at the moment that we get a lot of praise as individuals and as a team, but we need to keep going.
“The more points we can take, the tougher it becomes for the opponent.
“But it is only January, so we need to work hard, keep our heads down and then maybe good things will come.”
