Swansea City midfielder Ki Sung-yueng hopes his side can repeat last season's opening-day shock when they face champions Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League this weekend.
Ki scored in the win over Manchester United on the first day of last season as Swansea went on the finish a creditable eighth in the Premier League.
"We had the perfect start last year which set us up for the rest of the campaign," the 26-year-old South Korean international was quoted as saying on Swansea's website (www.swanseacity.net).
Ki is aware of the enormity of the task at hand against Jose Mourinho's side.
"It's going to be tough, but hopefully we can do the same again," Ki said. "Our preparation has been good over the last six weeks. We've trained very hard and everyone is ready to go.
"Chelsea are the defending champions -- and worthy champions at that," he added.
"We know we will have to be at our very best to come away with a positive result, but we have shown in the past what we can do on our day."
Cattermole targets top 10 return for Sunderland
Midfielder Lee Cattermole believes Sunderland are finally ready to shake off the tag of serial underachievers after narrowly escaping relegation in each of their last three seasons.
Cattermole, who signed a new long-term deal last month, was part of the team that finished 10th under Steve Bruce in 2011, the only time the Black Cats ended in the top half of the Premier League table in the last 14 years.
"This feels like my club. If you spend enough time somewhere, you fall in love with it," British media quoted the 27-year-old Englishman, who has spent the past six years on Wearside, as saying.
Manager Dick Advocaat has signed Jermain Lens, Sebastian Coates, Younes Kaboul and Adam Matthews over the summer and Cattermole feels the additions can help the club avoid another season flirting with relegation.
"In terms of the team, I think this is the best group of players now that I've ever been a part of here," he said.
The combative defensive midfielder said the club must try to emulate the highs of the 2000 and 2001 seasons, when Sunderland finished seventh for two seasons in a row under Peter Reid.
"We need to look to push on and get back to the kind of heights that the club enjoyed in the Peter Reid era," he said.
"They finished seventh back then, and if you can finish in or around there, then that's progress, and I don't see any reason why we shouldn't be competing with where Swansea, Stoke and Southampton are."
Southampton finished seventh last season ahead of Swansea at eighth and Stoke a spot further behind.
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