Chelsea forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has told his teammates they need to beat AC Milan to keep their Champions League hopes alive.
Graham Potter’s side are in desperate need of their first win in Group E following a defeat and draw in their opening two games against Dinamo Zagreb and RB Salzburg.
The first two matches were, arguably, the easiest with AC Milan now awaiting Chelsea in the next two group games, both of which could be group-defining depending on results between Zagreb and Salzburg.
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Chelsea won their first match under Potter at the weekend in a late 2-1 win over Crystal Palace, but they needed a moment of brilliance from Conor Gallagher in the 90th minute to snatch all three points in the London derby.
Aubameyang was also on the scoresheet to start the comeback in the capital, netting on his league debut for the Blues after arriving from Barcelona in the summer.
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Potter appears to have favourited the Gabon international to lead the line for Chelsea in attack and it is likely Aubameyang will be needed to fire the hosts to victory against the Rossoneri on Wednesday night at Stamford Bridge.
Aubameyang knows the importance of the European affair, stating that they have to win at all costs.
"Maybe we will get our first three points at home,” admitted the 33-year-old ahead of the Champions League clash.
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"I think this is really important – if we want to qualify we have to win the game.
“These two games are key and we will have to show character like we did against Crystal Palace on Saturday and win those two games."
On the Palace win, Aubameyang added: “This victory gives us a lot of confidence.
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"I think, as a group, getting that first win was really important for us as a team and for the new manager, so we are really happy.
“Getting the victory away from home is also a big step and I think this is very good for us going into a big run of tough games now.”
Chelsea will need all of the squad at their best with Potter knowing the next six weeks are important ahead of the World Cup break.
“We’ve got a really intense period. We need everybody; it’s impossible to play with 11 players,” said the Chelsea head coach.
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They were handed a welcome boost on Tuesday morning at their Cobham training centre after Edouard Mendy, Marc Cucurella and N’Golo Kante all featured in training ahead of the game.
Topics: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Chelsea, AC Milan, Champions League, Football
Matthew Debono