Chelsea and Barcelona went head-to-head at this stage of the competition last season. A narrow 2-1 aggregate victory saw the Catalans advance to the final, where they would win the trophy.

Twelve months on, the two clubs face off again for a place in the final in Bilbao. And Carney, who played in a European semi-final for the Blues, insists this Chelsea team possesses the mentality needed to eliminate the current European champions.

'I think sometimes it is about putting certain pieces of the puzzle together,' said Carney. 'Results they’ve had down the years have led to this point and from Chelsea’s perspective, they’ll think now is the right time.

'Barcelona are the current champions and no doubt have a plethora of talent – they are ridiculously good. But so are Chelsea and they have to have the confidence to believe they can be better over two games.

'The fans have got to get behind them. There might be some difficult moments where they have to dig deep as a team but you’ve seen season after season this Chelsea side can do that.

'They’ll be massively up for it. It’s a huge game but I believe Chelsea have got a real opportunity to beat Barca. The players have to believe it as well.'

Chelsea almost forced extra time in the meeting between the two clubs last season; Guro Reiten's second-half goal in the second leg led to a late flourish of pressure from the Blues.

Unfortunately, we missed out on a second European final and Barcelona went on to lift the trophy. And as was the case last year, Carney expects this season's tie to be decided by the finest of margins.

'Barcelona are strong, so Chelsea will have to get to grips with them. But equally, Chelsea are also strong all over the pitch and can hurt teams in different areas. I think the key will be stopping Barcelona from getting into a bit of rhythm.

'Making the game physical will be important. The teams that have had success against Barcelona – like Lyon in the final a few seasons ago – made it really physical and stopped them from playing.

'But both teams have so many gifted players so it could come down to very fine margins.'

Unlike last season, Stamford Bridge will host the second leg. Carney believes this could be a key factor in the outcome.

'The biggest thing for Chelsea will be staying in the tie after the away leg, ideally not conceding,' added Carney. 'I think that would be massive. Bringing it back here then, especially with the home crowd who can make a huge difference.

‘You need to still be in the tie, I’m not saying that from a negative perspective, but getting a positive result, whatever that is in that first leg, will be big. The home environment here, the feel, the crowd, the noise might take them to the next level and get you to that final.’