Chelsea not contemplating defeat

Florent Malouda insists Chelsea are not dwelling on the prospect of defeat in their do-or-die Champions League clash against Valencia.

Only a victory against Valencia, or a goalless draw so long as Bayer Leverkusen avoid defeat to Genk, will see Andre Villas-Boas’ men through to the knockout stages of the tournament.

Defeat would further ratchet up the pressure on the Blues’ beleaguered young coach, but Malouda insists that possibility is not weighing heavily on the minds of the players.

“We have (made) a big mistake in Germany against Leverkusen and we have to correct that at home in front of our fans,” the Frenchman told Sky Sports News.

“We want to have our fans behind us. That is what we need at the moment. We don’t think about defeat. We have a positive way of thinking.”

“What we are looking for is a victory to qualify. Every time we start a game it is to win, so we are not thinking about this scenario.”

Next up after Valencia for Chelsea are Premier League leaders Manchester City, and Malouda admits the game could be crucial for the west Londoners’ domestic hopes.

“December will be a very important month for us,” he said. “We have massive games and all we need to do is to win and go from game to game.”

“We had a bad period recently with bad results but, as you could see against Newcastle, when we have that confidence we can beat any team.”

“For us that will be a wonderful opportunity to close the gap and maybe show the other teams there is a way to beat Man City.”