Petr Cech is hoping it will be third time lucky with Carlo Ancelotti – who has already brought an air of calmness to Chelsea.

The keeper was one of the stars of the Jose Mourinho period, but has seen the club go into decline under the two permanent bosses Avram Grant and Luiz Felipe Scolari in charge since the Portuguese coach left two years ago.

He said: ‘I am excited by the prospects for the new season. We have a large squad with lots of quality. We played really well in pre-season, which was good for the confidence of the team.

‘It’s important to have stability now. When you have the same manager you can build the team and just move a few players around.

‘Unfortunately at Chelsea this has not been the case in the last few years. We hope that this time it will be third time lucky and it will work.

‘We were very successful under Mourinho and this is what you always hope for as a player. You want to have stability.’