Andre Villas-Boas is aware that the final group stage match of the Champions League is a matter of 'life and death' for Chelsea.
The Blues need at least a point from their December 6 meeting with Spanish outfit Valencia to progress to the knockout stages of Europe's premier club competition and after dropping out of the Carling Cup at the hands of Liverpool last night, Villas-Boas acknowledges his team are in a precarious position.
"The Champions League is a competition that is life and death and this standard won't be enough," he said.
"We will need to up the tempo and play that game with the ultimate desire."
And the Portuguese was also looking for improved performances in the Premier League after seeing the Blues drop three of their past five matches.
"For our Premier League challenge to be alive we need to make the most of our December fixtures," he added.
"If we are able to do that we can get it back on track, not that we can't get back on track after. If we do well in December it will have a major impact.
"We recovered two points on our near opponents when we beat Wolves last weekend, which was good.
"The FA Cup and Champions League come into play next year, so we don't know what will happen in March and April.
"But it's a fact that if we get points from December, it will put our challenge back on track."
