Chelsea ‘title thirst remains unquenched’

Group stageTodayMan United vs Galatasaray 20:45 SS3Celtic vs SL BenficaSC Braga vs CFR 1907 Chelsea vs Juventus 20:45 SS3

Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo shows off 'Big Ears' to the Munich crowd in May. Net photo.

Group stageTodayMan United vs Galatasaray 20:45 SS3Celtic vs SL BenficaSC Braga vs CFR 1907 Chelsea vs Juventus 20:45 SS3Lille vs BATE BorisovBayern vs Valencia 20:45 SS6Barcelona vs Spartak Moskva S.Donetsk vs Nordsjælland LONDON – Chelsea begin their quest to become the first team to win back-to-back Champions League titles on Wednesday when they entertain a Juventus side still getting used to matchdays without their coach.The Londoners ended a long wait to become kings of Europe for the first time by beating Bayern Munich on penalties on a memorable night in the German club’s Allianz Arena in May but manager Roberto Di Matteo said their thirst for trophies remained unquenched."The owner (Roman Abramovich) has never lost his ambition,” Di Matteo said ahead of the Group E opener at Stamford Bridge. "He always wants to win with this club and continue to drive for excellence."As long as he is at the helm his ambition to win will never diminish.”Chelsea have made a good start to their domestic season and are riding high at the top of the Premier League with three wins and one draw from their opening four games.However, they have failed to win their last two matches, suffering an embarrassing 4-1 defeat by Atletico Madrid in the European Super Cup in Monaco and being held to a 0-0 draw at neighbours Queens Park Rangers in a feisty Premier League encounter on Saturday.Conte banJuventus coach Antonio Conte will be absent from the bench because of a 10-month ban for his role in not reporting match-fixing while boss of Siena last year. Conte, who has strenuously denied the allegations, is appealing against the suspension.Assistant coach Massimo Carrera is covering for Conte on the bench and a row has broken out in Italy over what the ban actually means and whether Conte can train the squad in private.Juve started several big names, including Mirko Vucinic and Kwadwo Asamoah, on the bench for the 3-1 win at Genoa on Sunday in order to save them for the Champions League.However, The Serie A champions needed both players to come on as substitutes in a game where they were second best for long spells.Vucinic and Asamoah netted late goals to help the Serie A leaders make it three wins from the opening three league games of the season.