Di Matteo confident Chelsea will do well against Juventus

Posted on November 20, 2012 by SoccerPunter

Roberto Di Matteo has dismissed concerns over Chelsea recent inconsistent form and says the Champions League holders will grab three points from Juventus.

Chelsea come into this match second on Group H, level points as leaders Shakhtar Donetsk, but with Juventus at third placing only a point difference meant that the battle for the last 16 is still wide open.

Juventus will be playing with home ground advantage and they are doing well in Italy Serie A with a four-point lead over Inter Milan.

With the omission of John Terry, Chelsea 2-1 defeat to West Bromwich Albion for last weekend English Premier League match have unsettled the dressing room. Chelsea have leaked a total of 17 goals in their last eight matches in all competitions.

View Juventus vs Chelsea H2H stats.

But Di Matteo, who played for Lazio and Chelsea in his career, said Chelsea have the confidence and character to concentrate fully on grabbing a place in the last 16 knockout phase.

“I feel confident, we have a good team, we know the importance of the match and the players do as well,” Di Matteo said Monday.

“There was frustration from the result of Saturday, that’s normal.

“We know the importance of the game tomorrow so we know the kind of commitment that will be needed.

“We’re confident we can have a good game and come up with the required result. We owe ourselves a good performance.”

Di Matteo rested a number of key players for Saturday’s defeat but while most, except injured captain John Terry, are available the Chelsea manager kept mum about his possible lineup.

Defender Gary Cahill, meanwhile, said whichever team lines up at the 40,000-capacity Juventus Stadium knows what will be required.

And he brushed off questions suggesting Saturday’s defeat left the team in turmoil.

“All the lads are aware of what’s ahead of them and what’s expected of them,” said Cahill.

He believes the fallout from Chelsea’s recent setback may actually go in their favour.

“Losing games is not acceptable, so yes, it’s a positive thing. Sometimes things need to be said. It’s a good sign when the lads are getting upset about losing a game of football

“I’d be worried if people were just going into the shower and getting on the bus.”

Juventus were only beaten for the first time in over a year two weeks ago, and came away from Stamford Bridge with a 2-2 draw on the opening match of the campaign.

But despite big expectations of a win for the hosts in Italy, Di Matteo believes they have the measure of the two-time champions who are making their return to the competition this season.

“At the moment we’re thinking positive. We played a very good game at home against Juve,” added Di Matteo.

“It will be a difficult game but they’re under pressure as well, so it will make it an interesting game.”

Cahill suggested Chelsea’s players possess the character and quality to forget Saturday’s defeat and focus on the job at hand.

“When you lose games it knocks your character, but we’ve got a quality squad and it’s not something that we’re gonna dwell on too long.

“We’ve got an important game tomorrow night.”