Roma Have a Tough Champions League Group, Claims di Francesco

Roma manager Eusebio di Francesco claims that the Italian club have been handed an extremely tough group in the Champions League.

Roma once again finished as the runners up last season and were handed a direct path into the group stages of the Champions League. Just when it seemed that the club would be hoping for an easy group in order to help them reach the knockout stages, Roma have been put in a group containing Atletico Madrid, Chelsea, andQarabag. Apart from the inclusion of Azerbaijani team Qarabag, it represents an extremely tough group.

Chelsea were the champions of the Premier League last season and have one of the best managers in the world in the form of Antonio Conte. Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid, meanwhile, are extremely tough to beat and have been able to progress into the latter stages of the Champions League more often than not in recent seasons. The Spanish outfit have reached the finals of the competition twice in the last five years.

Hence,Eusebio di Francesco feels that Roma have been handed one of the toughest groups in the competition. The 47-year-old paid tribute to Chelsea and Atletico Madrid, while admitting thatQarabag should not be taken lightly.

Roma made a poor start to the league campaign with a 1-0 loss against Atalanta. However,the manager is confident of bouncing back in the match against Inter Milan this weekend. "Chelsea and Atletico Madrid are important clubs, while Qarabag are not to be underestimated. Over the last four years, Atletico Madrid have played in two finals, showing how accustomed they are to playing at this level. They do not play beautiful football, but they always get a result through solid football.Aside from the players at their disposal, their strength is to work so much with Diego Simeone. Chelsea are also very strong this season,” said di Francesco.