Chelsea travel to face Maccabi Tel-Aviv knowing that a win will see them qualify for the knockout stages of the Champions League unless Dynamo Kiev can manage to defeat Porto in Portugal.
The Blues managed to easily defeat the Israeli’s 4-0 in the first meeting between the sides back in September, and the minnows have lost every game in the competition since, conceding 11 goals and scoring just once.
Jose’s Mourinho’s side have struggled in the league, but their European form has been good, with their only defeat coming away to group leaders Porto.
Having defeated Norwich at the weekend thanks to Diego Costa’s first goal in eight appearances for club and country, Chelsea will be looking for another confidence boosting win.
If Mourinho’s men want to play Champions League football next year, winning this season’s competition may be the best way to ensure that they are. After their poorest start to a Premier League season, they find themselves 11 places and 12 points behind fourth-placed Tottenham.
While it’s not impossible to claw back a 12 point deficit, the likelihood of the other teams in the mix also dropping so many points seems unlikely.
Chelsea currently have a 4.17% chance of winning the Champions League, according to Bonus Code Bets, who think Barcelona are the favourites to win the competition.
