Cole: Confidence is sky-high at Chelsea

Ashley Cole insists confidence is at its highest at Chelsea since he joined two years ago.

Cole has twice been a Premier League runner-up following his move from Arsenal but the left-back believes the arrival of manager Luiz Felipe Scolari, as well as Portugal internationals Deco and Jose Bosingwa, will make all the difference this term.

Since beating AC Milan 5-0 in their final pre-season friendly nine days ago, the squad have been preparing for the opening game, against Portsmouth on Sunday, and Cole insists the atmosphere is as good as ever. He said: "The confidence among the players is as high as I've known. Every player has looked back at last season and seen how close we were despite all the injuries and everything that happened.

"We have improved the squad with the players we have signed and everyone has got better as players as well - I think this year will be our season.

"Portsmouth will be a tough game. They have good players and signed Peter Crouch to play with Jermain Defoe up front. But we are happy with the way we have played in pre-season and we are good enough to beat Portsmouth."

Bosingwa could be fit to make his debut, having returned to full training yesterday after a thigh injury. But defender Branislav Ivanovic, who only joined Chelsea in a £9million deal from Lokomotiv Moscow in January, may have left the squad by then.

Ivanovic has been linked with a move to AC Milan or Juventus, having failed to make a single appearance for the club in the second half of last season. His agent claims AC Milan are set to secure a loan move for the Serbia international with a view to a permanent move.