Rejuvenated star David Luiz has urged his Chelsea teammates to fight and bring the Europa League trophy home this season, despite regretting the travels and grueling games in their path.
The Blues are plunged right in Group L where they face PAOK FC of Greece, BATE Borisov, and Videoton in Hungary, with their first game against the Greek opponents to be played on Thursday night.
Maurizio Sarri and his men are already in Greece ahead of their opening game in the competition tonight and the Italian tactician is set to rotate his side for a more efficient embrace of all competitions they find themselves in.
Central defender Luiz wants more from his side as they jump into a busy schedule of combining the Premier League with the domestic and continental cup competitions. He reveals the level of difficulty in the Europa League is tougher than many people make it look.
“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.
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.”
David Luiz, Evening Standard
