The Blues bowed out of the competition last season in the Round of 16 stage after they were put to the sword 7-1 on aggregate by eventual winners Bayern Munich.
The West Londoners have bolstered their squad ahead of this season, adding five new players to their ranks.
Despite spending over £200 million for the likes of Timo Werner, Hakim Ziyech, Ben Chilwell, and Kai Havertz this summer, Chelsea have endured a lukewarm start to the season, having recorded only two wins out of their opening five league games.
Frank Lampard has often blamed the lack of pre-season for his side’s inconsistency but Lopetegui is adamant that Sevilla and almost every team have the right to make similar excuses as he thinks the Coronavirus pandemic affected every team.
The former Real Madrid coach also insisted that his side must have their game face on when they meet Chelsea, a team he thinks can win the Champions League this season.
“I can’t comment on what he said but if anyone has had an atypical pre-season then it is us.” Lopetegui said as per the club’s website.
“We have been saying this since everything started amid this complex situation,” he continued.
“I don’t think you can look at these things too much and I think you just need to focus on adapting as best as possible with solutions.
“I think everybody has had a disrupted pre-season. Some had 12 days off. I think we need to adapt to the new reality as quickly as possible.
“Something that can help us is the excitement we feel when we get to compete in a competition like the Champions League, which is extremely demanding and exciting.
“We are against one of the teams that can win the competition in Chelsea. We need to perform well tomorrow, that’s the only thing we can do.”
