Chelsea defender David Luiz has insisted that Chelsea will fight to win the Europa League this season.
Chelsea finished 5th in the Premier League last season and automatically qualified for the Europa League. They kicked off the tournament with a 1-0 win over PAOK on Thursday evening. Maurizio Sarri’s side must also face BATE Borisov and Videoton in Group L next month and Luiz is not expecting an easy road to the knockout stages.
“Many people don’t understand how hard it is to win this competition. The level is great. It’s not going to be easy to play,” Luiz admitted before the win against PAOK. It’s not going to be easy to play on a Thursday. It’s not going to be easy because of how far we have to travel but also because of the quality of the teams. I know because I have played in the Europa League more than once. I also played in it with Benfica.
“It’s not what everyone says about it [not being a good standard]. It is never easy to win a competition like this. We have an amazing squad, everyone has the quality to play. It doesn’t matter who the 11 are on the pitch, Chelsea will always be at a great level to win games. We will fight for all the titles. It doesn’t matter the name of the competition, we play for a big club. We will always be under pressure to win every game.”
The FA Cup winners will travel to the London Stadium next to face West Ham United on Sunday afternoon.