I believe we'll be successful once again

Are you looking forward to the new season of the Premier League?
I always do. Pre-season prep was pretty challenging, we travelled around the whole globe but everything went according to plan and I think we're ready for the real thing.
You have travelled around Asia and the US recently. Didn't that disrupt the team's training schedule?
We know about it in advance and the club did its best to maintain proper training conditions. The amount and quality of training are the most important, and these things definitely weren't an issue despite all the travelling. We've trained just enough.
Did you get to look around the cities you played in during your time off?
We usually just stayed at the hotel and relaxed, but for instance in Washington D.C. I got to see the White House and Pentagon. I took part in a tennis competition and I met my friend Radek Stepanek for that occasion. On one day I played tennis against him under Petr Korda's supervision and on the next day he swung by our training field and shot penalty kicks at me.
How did that go?
Our tennis game was a walk in the park for Radek, if he had played full out there would have been no point whatsoever… When we moved on to penalty kicks I told him that if he could score more than two out of five he would win, and if he scored two it would be a draw, which is what the final result was.
Petr, Chelsea is once again one of the top title contenders. What do you have to say about that?
Last season we had to change managers and yet we came third. The team per se stayed unscathed, perhaps even became stronger. We're well prepared and the future is in our hands. We obviously want to win as much as possible and we'll see where that takes us.
Who are your biggest rivals for next season?
Both Manchester clubs, Arsenal and maybe even Tottenham and Liverpool. It's going to be quite the battle.
Manchester City spent the most money on transfers once again this summer. What do you say to the 90 million GBP sum?
All the teams purchased new players depending on need and budget. In the end it's all about the team's performance on the pitch. If the players don't cooperate and get along well, it can all be squandered money. See for example QPR last season… They'd bought about 20 players who didn't end up working as a team and as a result they relegated.
Mourinho's comeback is still a recurring topic. How do you perceive it?
I'm happy to work with him again. Our former cooperation was very fruitful and I hope it will only get better and better.
You are about to start the season as Chelsea's number one goalkeeper. Are you glad to have retained that role?
Of course I am. I'm really satisfied with my pre-season prep, I trained extremely hard and I hope it will show in the upcoming matches. Whether I'll get to keep this role for the entire season will depend on my performance.
Chelsea has a new goalie signing, the experienced Australian Schwarzer. How is he?
An utter professional, I love his approach. Maybe that's why he's still going strong at 40 years of age. He fit right in, he has a similar sense of humour as Ross Turnbull who's left us. Other than that there's no major changes. There's Jamal Blackman and Hilario, who's negotiated a new contract.
Chelsea obtained several new signings this summer; Schürrle, van Ginkel, as well as Kalas, Lukaku and De Bruyne. How are they all getting on?
It was essential that they join right at the beginning of pre-season prep so that they could acclimatise and find out how everything works. They all did well. It is also due to them that the team's become even more powerful, and our manager will now have more options, too.
Your fellow Czech teammate was doing great up until the point when he sustained some injuries. How is he doing?
He's starting to walk without an immobiliser and I think he'll be fine soon. It's obviously a bit unfortunate for him as he got injured halfway through pre-season prep. Otherwise he would have come along to the US. Now he's got to catch up on training and get back into shape. How long that will take is only up to his dedication.