Claudio Ranieri believes Leicester City are Premier League leaders because the top clubs have not played to their potential this season.
Leicester's lead has been cut to five points with four games to go after Tottenham sent out a strong statement with a 4-0 win at Stoke on Monday.
The focus will now return to Ranieri's side, who will take on Swansea at home next Sunday without top scorer Jamie Vardy after he was sent off in the 2-2 draw against West Ham and then charged with improper conduct.
In an interview with France Football published this week, Ranieri acknowledged that Leicester are still in with a chance of winning the league only because other teams have underperformed.
"I think that if Leicester are there, it's also because the big clubs have not given 100 percent until now, for one reason or another," the Foxes manager said.
"Our goal was to stay in the Premier League -- that's done. And now we're fighting for the title. We honestly couldn't have contemplated more than that."
Ranieri said he has been working seven days a week during his time at Leicester but that doing something he loved so much did not feel like a chore.
He also played down the significance of potentially winning a league title after a near miss with Roma and further second-place finishes with Chelsea and Monaco.
"I'm very happy with what I've done," the Italian said. "In fact, two people co-exist inside me. One who says, 'You have to win, you have to win!' And the other that says, 'but look at what you've accomplished!'
"I've been a manager for 30 years now... I've won third and second division titles, cups. I'm missing the title in the first division of a league.
"Will it happen? I don't know. I'm ambitious. I want this title, but inside me there's this thought that says, 'Claudio, what you've accomplished is no mean feat.'"