John Terry: Chelsea have the squad to win the Champions League

Posted Thursday, October 21, 2010 by theguardian.com

John Terry: Chelsea have the squad to win the Champions League
John Terry applauds the fans after Chelsea's victory over Spartak Moscow at the Luzhniki Stadium on Tuesday.

John Terry described his return to the Luzhniki Stadium as "horrible", though Chelsea's victory over Spartak Moscow at the scene of their Champions League final defeat of two years ago has reinforced the defender's conviction that the trophy can finally be claimed this season.

The Premier League champions have broken free at the top of Group F and can qualify for the knockout stage with a win in the return fixture against Spartak on 3 November. A first European Cup remains this squad's principal target this season, their motivation intensified by the reality that the final will be hosted at Wembley, with their pedigree clear. Spartak's Republic of Ireland midfielder Aiden McGeady even likened their slick style of play on Tuesday to that of Barcelona.

Terry, of course, had his own demons to banish at the Luzhniki after fluffing a penalty in the shoot-out against Manchester United in 2008 that, had it been converted, would have claimed his side the trophy.

"It was horrible coming back," he said. "It brought back painful memories, and those will never really go away. I suppose winning means, as a player, I can now move on. But we've done that as a team, and who knows? We've come back here in the group, won and maybe the bad things that happened in Moscow could now lead to better things.

"There's always a positive in life and that's the way I look at it. The European Cup is the one trophy that's eluded me and the club. We've come so close in the past, and had plenty of bad luck and unfortunate games. The semi-final against Liverpool [in 2005] – was their goal over the line or not? The final in 2008 against United, and the semi-final in 2009 against Barcelona, when we could have had five or maybe six penalties.

"But, when those things happen, you have to try and move on. You really dig in deep, and I really think we have the squad here to do that this year. Everyone at the club believes that as well. None of us will rest on our laurels until we do go on and win this trophy. We've achieved so much domestically, but it would be great for us to step up to that extra level and become European Cup winners."

The quality on show against Spartak suggested that is not a pipe dream. The hosts had won their opening two group games without conceding a goal but were caught on the counterattack by Yuri Zhirkov's wonderful half-volley and then pierced again by Nicolas Anelka's strike just before the interval.

"That made it a mountain for us to climb," said McGeady, a £9.5m signing from Celtic in the summer. "They're definitely the best team we have faced this season, and they can go on and win it. Certainly.

"They're one of the top European teams, and they play like that, too. They are very similar to Barcelona. Their wide players come in and their full-backs bomb on. Ashley Cole plays like a winger. People say he's got an ankle problem but you couldn't tell. His fitness is incredible. He is up and down the pitch all night. I am a winger but I'm watching Cole because he likes to bomb on so much. It should be the other way around."

The strength and experience Chelsea boast throughout their team – even with the likes of Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard, Ramires, Yossi Benayoun, José Bosingwa and Alex all absent though either illness, injury or rest – demands the Londoners be considered contenders. "We're delighted," added Terry, who will welcome Drogba back to the line-up against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday. "This is a tough place to come and win, but we defended well and finished the game off in that first half. We dealt with them and can take huge encouragement from that performance."