Chelsea boss Antonio Conte admits the prospect of facing Barcelona has given him sleepless nights but insists his side are ready to embrace the tag of underdogs and topple their fearsome rivals in the Champions League last 16.
While they are unbeaten in their last seven matches against Barcelona, the Blues head into Tuesday’s first leg clash at Stamford Bridge in patchy domestic form, having won just four of their previous 12 games across all competitions.
Conversely, Ernesto Valverde’s Barcelona boast a seven-point lead at the summit of La Liga and have lost just one match, in the Copa del Rey against Espanyol last month, since the start of the league season.
But while Conte has warned his players that they are likely to “suffer” without the ball, the Italian is adamant that a strategy has been concocted to stifle the free-flowing Catalans.
“It was a bit difficult to sleep well because when you have to play these type of games, you have to prepare everything. You have to prepare big things but also the details,” said Conte.
“We start this game as underdogs, for sure, because Barcelona on paper are favourites to go to the next round. But we must be excited to have this challenge. These two games will be important to understand our level in this competition.
“We are talking about a tough game against a special opponent, a very strong opponent. We have to play a perfect game against Barcelona if we want to win.
“But we have prepared very well for this game and studied the opponent very well. We have an idea and a plan in our heads and while we start as underdogs, we start nil-nil. We must be excited.”
Playmaker Eden Hazard, meanwhile, who scored three goals in the competition’s group stages, adopted a more bullish tone than his manager and was happy to exude supreme confidence on the eve of the tie.
The 27-year-old also accepted that the two-legged showdown with Barcelona, together with upcoming Premier League fixtures against Manchester United and runaway leaders Manchester City, would make or break their season.
“Definitely [it is make or break]. We know the games we’re going to play, but we play football for this game,” said Hazard. “We are Chelsea, we are the champions of England and we are ready. We can face them and we can beat them, if we want. Let’s go for it.”
Chelsea are expected to welcome back wing-back Marcos Alonso after he missed three games through a combination of hamstring and ankle injuries. Centre-half David Luiz and midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko are both doubtful.
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