Chelsea are top of Group D having won both their opening games against Porto and Apoel Nicosia.

Nicolas Anelka scored the decisive goal in both 1-0 victories but the performances were far from convincing.

Now the Italian coach is looking for a distinct improvement against Atletico Madrid tonight.

The Spanish side have made their worst start to a league season since the beginning of the 1994 but Ancelotti is wary of writing them off.

"We have had difficult games in the Champions League," said Ancelotti. "Porto, in the first game, was not an easy match because they have very good organisation.

"The same thing against Apoel Nicosia. Everyone thinks that playing in Cyprus is easy, but it's not. Football in Cyprus has improved. For example, the national team won 4-1 against Bulgaria recently.

"There are no easy games. We can play better in the Champions League, for sure, but at the moment it's important to win.

"We want to play our best in March and April when the matches are very, very important.

"Atletico have not started the season well, but they have a very good quality.

"In attack they have Sergio Aguero and Diego Forlan who are dangerous strikers. We have to pay attention to this.

"Aguero has fantastic quality and he can resolve the match with his quality. They're a good team but, at this moment, they haven't found a good disposition tactically on the pitch.

"I think that Atletico has a possibility to return to playing well because they have a lot of quality. Now, at this moment, for them it's not easy because Porto have also made a good start.

"But in these four games, they can still arrive at the top.

"It's a very important game. Not only to get back to winning ways after Aston Villa, but to stay top of the group and move to nine points. This will make the next three games in the group easier."

Meanwhile, Germany captain Michael Ballack revealed Chelsea's players have held a training ground inquest into the defensive errors which are threatening to disrupt their season.

Chelsea lost 2-1 against Aston Villa last Saturday, their second successive away defeat, with both goals being conceded from corners.

Captain John Terry was furious with their set-piece mistakes and midfielder Ballack, who missed the game with an ankle injury, revealed the squad are determined to put matters right.

"John's reaction on the pitch showed that he takes a big responsibility not just for himself but for the team," said Ballack. "He was really disappointed when we conceded the second goal.

"That's what you need, emotions like that, to make sure it doesn't happen again. We speak with each other. We have no problem criticising each other in the dressing room. A good team with strong players has to do this."