Florent Malouda has not been back to Stamford Bridge since lifting the Premier League trophy on May 9. Two months on he is desperate for another go, but knows we face a long battle to retain our crown.
The winger sparkled and shone for much of last season, rightly earning the Player's Player of the Year award as he helped us to the Double and a record number of goals scored in one season.
Now the time has come to stop reflecting on those successes and ensure that by May 2011, we are in celebratory mood once more.
'Even if the trophy is heavy it is a real pleasure to have it and it was a very hard season for us last year, we had a struggle to get it, but that's the way it is, it doesn't come easy but once you get it you realize you did a great thing. Now we want it again,' said the Frenchman, before admitting we begin the campaign in less than ideal shape after a tricky pre-season period.
'It has been a tough pre-season. I think when you come back from a big event like the World Cup you must quickly switch on in your mind,' he explained. 'It has been a short pre-season, we didn't have good results but that's normal, because there were too many differences.
'Some players were back on July 5, others had longer holidays because we know the season will be long, so the most important thing is at the beginning of the season when maybe we are not 100 percent as a team to work on the confidence, work hard, defend well and then be really efficient in front of goal, that's how to prepare the next good moments.
'Winning is a habit but you have to prepare yourself to win, the season is very long, especially the Premier League. It is a good taste when you are winning and celebrating on the pitch but you must never forget the basics, so for me, the most important thing is to start right, get back to the basics, get the confidence back and you can keep on winning.'
We currently have three straight league wins and many will be expecting us to add to that in grand fashion against newly-promoted West Brom at the Bridge on Saturday afternoon, given the goalscoring form in which we ended the last campaign.
Does Malouda believe we can be quite so prolific once more in 2010/11, or was our record 142 goals last term, 103 of them in the Premier League, a one-off?
'We shouldn't forget that achievement, it was a record, and because we are competitors we must have the aim to beat our own record,' argues the 30-year-old. '. It won't be easy but I think we have the quality and the strength to score even more goals. That will be the best way to keep the Premier League at Stamford Bridge.'
The winger sparkled and shone for much of last season, rightly earning the Player's Player of the Year award as he helped us to the Double and a record number of goals scored in one season.
Now the time has come to stop reflecting on those successes and ensure that by May 2011, we are in celebratory mood once more.
'Even if the trophy is heavy it is a real pleasure to have it and it was a very hard season for us last year, we had a struggle to get it, but that's the way it is, it doesn't come easy but once you get it you realize you did a great thing. Now we want it again,' said the Frenchman, before admitting we begin the campaign in less than ideal shape after a tricky pre-season period.
'It has been a tough pre-season. I think when you come back from a big event like the World Cup you must quickly switch on in your mind,' he explained. 'It has been a short pre-season, we didn't have good results but that's normal, because there were too many differences.
'Some players were back on July 5, others had longer holidays because we know the season will be long, so the most important thing is at the beginning of the season when maybe we are not 100 percent as a team to work on the confidence, work hard, defend well and then be really efficient in front of goal, that's how to prepare the next good moments.
'Winning is a habit but you have to prepare yourself to win, the season is very long, especially the Premier League. It is a good taste when you are winning and celebrating on the pitch but you must never forget the basics, so for me, the most important thing is to start right, get back to the basics, get the confidence back and you can keep on winning.'
We currently have three straight league wins and many will be expecting us to add to that in grand fashion against newly-promoted West Brom at the Bridge on Saturday afternoon, given the goalscoring form in which we ended the last campaign.
Does Malouda believe we can be quite so prolific once more in 2010/11, or was our record 142 goals last term, 103 of them in the Premier League, a one-off?
'We shouldn't forget that achievement, it was a record, and because we are competitors we must have the aim to beat our own record,' argues the 30-year-old. '. It won't be easy but I think we have the quality and the strength to score even more goals. That will be the best way to keep the Premier League at Stamford Bridge.'
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