Levi Colwill has urged Chelsea to “use the anger” from December’s shock defeat by Ipswich as motivation to beat the Tractor Boys at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea headed into the weekend sitting fourth in the Premier League table with seven games to go and face a race to the finish line to confirm a Champions League spot for next season.
That run-in continues with the visit of relegation-threatened Ipswich to west London on Sunday.
The Blues have bad memories of the reverse fixture on December 30, when an early penalty from Liam Delap and goal by ex-Chelsea winger Omari Hutchinson saw them stunned 2-0 at Portman Road in what remains Ipswich’s only home league win of the season to date.
“It’s a huge game for us,” the centre-back said. “Every game from now on is a final to us. We’ve got to get the three points at home.
“We’ve got to remember what happened last time and give it a bit more. We weren’t good enough and they beat us. We’ve got to use that bit of anger that we’ve got in us to beat them this time.
“They’re quite a difficult team. I know that they’re in the bottom three, but they don’t always play like a bottom-three team.”
“I’ve played against him loads of times,” Colwill said of Delap. “He’s a really good player, but so are the rest of the [Ipswich] players. You can’t just think about him.
“I think every team in the league has had ups and downs this season. So have we. When we’re playing our football, I think we’re unstoppable. We’ve got to get the win on Sunday. Momentum is the biggest thing, and if our confidence is high, I think we’ll beat anyone.”
Chelsea’s 3-0 win in Poland means they are all but into the semi-finals of the Conference League, where they would face either Djurgarden of Sweden or Austrian side Rapid Vienna, who lead their last-eight tie after a 1-0 victory away from home.
Colwill is confident that Chelsea can lift the Conference League trophy this season, becoming the first club in history to win all three tiers of European club football.
“Yeah, of course, [it would mean] everything,” he said. “We’re in this competition to win it. There’s no two ways about it. When you play for Chelsea, every competition you’re in, you’re trying to win.
“It’s the same with this one. And I think it’s an amazing experience doing that.”
