Chelsea defender David Luiz insists his teammates will make amends for their embarrassing Champions League exit when they return to domestic action at Sunderland today.
The Blues routed Nordsjaelland 6-1 on Wednesday to secure a first victory under interim manager Rafael Benitez, but it was not enough to book a place in the last 16 as Chelsea became the first European champions to bow out at the group stage. Although they are out of the Champions League, Brazil star Luiz hopes the dominant performance against Nordsjaelland, and in particular the two goals scored by Fernando Torres, will provide a welcome lift ahead of the Premier League trip to the Stadium of Light this weekend.
"There was embarrassment in the dressing room and also sadness. We won the Champions League last season and to get knocked out after the group stage is a great disappointment," Luiz said.
"Now we have to look to the future and try to win the Europa League. The manager has just told us to keep working hard because the team deserves to win games.
"It was a great game from all the players with intensity and quality and we scored more goals, so this is good for the future. We have a new coach and philosophy and the quicker we get used to it the better for the team."
Despite Luiz's confidence, the premature Champions League exit puts even more pressure on Chelsea's domestic form and Benitez knows he has little margin for error.