Jose Mourinho admits failure to qualify for the Champions League knockout stages would be a disaster for Chelsea.
The Blues could clinch top spot in Group G with victory against Schalke in Gelsenkirchen tomorrow night.
However, defeat could leave their chances of advancing to the last 16 hanging in the balance.
And boss Mourinho admits the prospect of playing in the Europa League instead is driving his stars on.
He said: "We need points to carry on playing in the Champions League and that’s why we are here – to get the points.
"If we lose two matches we go to the Europa League. It makes no sense to speak about the last 16.
"The reality is we need points and we are going to try to do it tomorrow but if we don’t, we have the last game against Sporting to try and stay in the competition.
"This team is in a state of its evolution where to go to the Europa League would be very bad.
"The team gets better and the evolution is faster when you play in the best competitions against the best teams.
"I have told my players already that to play to the Europa League would be very disappointing for us."
