Champions League Group H: Chelsea, Ajax, Valencia in tie-break
Ajax travels to Lille with the aim of maintaining its lead ahead of Valencia and Chelsea, both teams locked level on points with the Amsterdam side.
Published : Nov 26, 2019 23:27 IST
Valencia hosts Chelsea in a crucial fixture on Wednesday in determining the fortunes of the Group H teams progression to the knockout stages of the Champions League.
Ajax travels to bottom-placed Lille with the aim of maintaining its lead ahead of Valencia and Chelsea, both teams locked level on points with the Amsterdam side after four matches.
Valencia pulled off a surprise 1-0 win when the two sides met at Stamford Bridge in September, but Frank Lampard's side has been on an outstanding run of form since, winning nine games out of 13 in all competitions.
Coach Albert Celades believes his side can still progress even it was to lose the home game at the Mestella.
“Chelsea are a super team, one of the best in Europe and are playing very well at the moment,” coach Albert Celades told a news conference ahead of the game.
Captain Dani Parejo added: “They are one of the best teams in the world because of their name, their history and everything else. They are in fantastic form even though they lost to Manchester City the other day.
“But we have to focus on us. We have shown we can compete against any team, whether it's in Spain or in Europe. We don't need to motivate ourselves at all for this one given who we are up against and what is at stake.”
Valencia is under greater pressure to win the game than Chelsea, which faces group minnows Lille at home in its final game next month while the Spaniards have to travel to Ajax, last season's semifinalist.
“It's a great opportunity for us to try and reach the next round. But even if we don't win we'll still have a good chance,” Celades added.
“But we will go out to win the game first of all and then see what happens next. We are a big club and we have to have that type of mentality.”
With inputs from Reuters