Chelsea’s long-awaited return to the Champions League is here, and for Enzo Maresca, it’s a debut at this level as a head coach.

The Italian has been refreshingly honest ahead of tonight’s heavyweight showdown with Bayern Munich, admitting that both he and his team are stepping into unfamiliar territory.

Speaking before the opening match with Bayern Munich, Maresca said: “First of all, we are very happy to be in this competition.

“One year ago, we were playing the Conference League play-off. We are happy to be here.

“For sure, winning the Conference League and the Club World Cup helps in different aspects. In terms of experience, I think all of us, when we start something, have a lack of experience. We have to start, and we’re going to start tomorrow.

“You know since last season that I always like to go game by game. You cannot think about the final or semi-final if you are not able to win games in the group stage. It’s the first thing tomorrow.

“We have the first one against a fantastic team that is probably one of the three, four or five favourites in this competition. We are going to try to do our job in the best way.”

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