Andre Schurrle: Chelsea must top Champions League group

Andre Schurrle believes that a club of Chelsea’s stature should always be aiming to top their Champions League group.

The Blues will secure top spot in Group E on Wednesday night if they seal a win against Steaua Bucharest at Stamford Bridge.

Finishing top of the table will increase Chelsea’s chances of being handed a favourable last-16 draw later this month, and the Germany international feels that coming first should be a priority for Jose Mourinho’s men.

“A club like Chelsea always needs to be at the top of the table in the group stage of the Champions League because almost all the other big teams are first in the group, like Bayern and Barcelona,” Schurrle told Chelsea’s website.

“It’s an important game today that we need to win to be top of the table.”

Schürrle has scored three Premier League goals in 12 appearances in the English top flight so far this season, including two at Stoke on Saturday.

Chelsea v Steaua Bucharest: Pre-match facts

• The Romanian club have not won for 22 games in the Champions League proper, since a 4-1 success at Dynamo Kyiv on 13 September 2006.

• Chelsea have finished as winners of their group in seven of their last ten campaigns and qualified for the knockout rounds as runners-up in two of the other years.

• Ashley Cole has not played for the Blues since 2 November, having briefly been sidelined with a rib injury sustained while on England duty.

• Chelsea have conceded 17 goals in the Premier League this season, already two more than they let in in the whole of Jose Mourinho’s first campaign at Stamford Bridge in 2004/05.