Marcos Alonso thinks Chelsea's recent history makes it just as important for the Blues to win the Europa League as it is for its final opponent Arsenal, insisting the Blues are "more used to winning things."
Chelsea has already qualified for the Champions League next season, while Arsenal must win in Baku on Wednesday to secure its place in Europe's elite club competition.
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Since Roman Abramovich took over at Stamford Bridge in 2004, Chelsea has won more major honors than any other Premier League club. Wednesday's final is the last chance for Maurizio Sarri's side to add another trophy to the list this season.
Alonso believes Chelsea has to win regardless of the match being its 63rd of the season, and he dismissed suggestions that there will be tired legs after the 2,864-mile trip to Azerbaijan.
"We aren’t tired with this kind of thing and we have had the days to recover. We are training properly every day,” Alonso said ahead of the final. "It’s a final. It’s the last chance we have to win a trophy this season, so it is a massive game for us.
"It is always important for us, for the fans, for the club to win a trophy. Of course, we are preparing to be ready and we are going to go for it. No, I don’t think so (that Arsenal will want it more to get into the Champions League).
"We have the same need here at Chelsea to win something. In the last few years, we have won more trophies than them and are more used to winning things. I don’t think that is something bad. It is something even better for us. We know what it is and this is another chance and something we all want."
The Europa League final will be the second all-English clash in the competition after Tottenham faced Wolverhampton in 1972, when the competition was known as the UEFA Cup.
The history between Arsenal and Chelsea is rich, but so is the history between Alonso and the Gunners. The fullback has had some impressive displays against Arsenal, and he was decisive earlier in the season when he scored a goal and provided an assist in the league game at Stamford Bridge, but he isn't bothered about whether he is the match winner or not in the chase for glory.
"To be honest, I don’t care who scores the goals," Alonso added. "Of course, I have great memories playing against Arsenal and have scored three or four times against them already. But it is a different game. It is a final, so I don’t care who scores. I just want to win and we have to play together as a team and that is the best way to get the win.”
Chelsea has won just two of its last 10 meetings with Arsenal and, most notably, it lost the FA Cup final to Arsenal in 2017 in Alonso's first season at the club.
The 28-year-old is hoping for more luck in Azerbaijan after Alexis Sanchez scored a contentious opening goal for Arsenal at Wembley in a game it went on to win 2-1.
"Yeah, I think that was a game where we deserved better," he concluded. "We conceded a goal a little bit...how do you say? A bad decision. I don’t know how to explain it. It is another chance. That is the past, we have to think about this one and it doesn’t matter about before.
"We have to go for it, it is a different game and a new challenge another trophy.”
