Antonio Conte warns of Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Juventus if Chelsea top Champions League group

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James Benge4 December 2017

Antonio Conte has warned Chelsea will face formidable opponents regardless of whether they top their Champions League group.

The Blues have already qualified for the knockout stages of the competition but will only be guaranteed first place if they beat Atletico Madrid, who also have to win if they are to have any hope of getting out of the group, at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday.

Failure to win will leave Chelsea relying on Qarabag picking up points away to Roma but slipping out of top spot in Group C may not make much difference for Conte’s men, such is the quality of the sides set to finish second in their groups.

“I think this game is important because we are playing against Atletico Madrid and they have shown in the past to be an important team in this tournament,” Conte told the Chelsea website.

“Now there is a risk they will be eliminated, but we have to play a good game, to improve our confidence, and because we want to reach the first position in our group.

“But if you arrive first, you could then get teams like Real Madrid, Bayern Munich or Juventus. It doesn’t change a lot if you arrive first or second. The most important thing is to reach the next stage, but for our mission and our confidence, it would be right to win and arrive first.”

With all of the five English sides currently on course to top their group Chelsea would have a limited pool of opponents (Paris St Germain, Barcelona and Besiktas) should they be overtaken by Roma tomorrow.

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