Chelsea manager Frank Lampard was forced to deny claims that he is "scared" of Ajax in an extraordinary exchange with a reporter during a press conference ahead of Wednesday's game.
The Blues travel to Amsterdam looking for their sixth straight win in all competitions, though last season's Champions League semi-finalists will likely prove a tough test.
Erik ten Hag's side are yet to taste defeat this season and have won both of their European matches against Lille and Valencia convincingly.
Lampard has spoken at length over the threat the Eredivisie champions possess, leading one journalist to ask: "Why are you so scared of Ajax?"
Former England international Lampard responded by saying: "What makes you say that?"
The reporter followed up in kind, using Lampard's expression as evidence for his claims.
"That's just my face," was Lampard's response as he broke out into a smile and other journalists began to audibly laugh at the line of questioning.
When pressed on why he had been speaking about Ajax so much in the aftermath of Saturday's win over Newcastle, he said: "When we're finished with Ajax it will all be about Burnley!"
Lampard did eventually go on to further hail his side's next opponents, saying: "I respect the team, on a serious note. We saw the way this team played last year, and I know that the team has changed slightly, I am very aware of the new threats of the team and anywhere to travel in the Champions League is a difficult match.
"They have won two games in the group convincingly, but it is definitely not a fact of being scared of Ajax. We have confidence in ourselves. We know that it is a tough match.
"The reason I spoke after Newcastle is because that was a game in the Premier League where they played a very low block. 5-4-1, very difficult to break down, which we managed to do.
"Ajax is completely different, so it was really important that we flipped a switch the minute that Newcastle finished because tomorrow [Wednesday] is a tough match."
Victory for Chelsea would see them move level on points with Ajax at the top of Group H as the Europa League champions look to reach the knockout stages under their new coach.