Cesar Azpilicueta says Chelsea were brave in the win over Ajax on Wednesday night.
With the game locked at 0-0, manager Frank Lampard sent on Christian Pulisic and Michy Batshuayi to find a winner.
He was rewarded when the pair combined for an 86th minute goal from Batshuayi.
Azpilicueta said: "They put us under a lot of pressure but we created a lot of chances to win the game. We were brave and I'm really happy we got a late goal.
"We are a team that always works hard together. We know only 11 can start and three can come on. The substitutions did well today, Michy got the goal, Christian (Pulisic) got the assist, we are a group.
"We knew that Ajax are a team with a lot of energy, very dynamic, lots of rotation in midfield and they have a lot of dangerous attacking players. We struggled early on to keep the pressure off even though we had a couple of chances but then we got better. The wingers and midfielders did a great job, it was really important to play with great intensity."