Petr Cech has challenged Chelsea's new signings to prove that they deserve to play for the European champions.

The Blues have invested heavily in youth so far this summer, capturing the likes of Marko Marin and Eden Hazard, while also closing in on Brazilian starlet Oscar.

Meanwhile, Jose Bosingwa, Salomon Kalou and Didier Drogba have all been released following the expiration of their contracts.

Cech said that it is now up to the new recruits to fill that void left by those players.

"Some big characters have left us and we will only see the personalities of the new players emerging when the season starts properly," said Cech. "At the moment it's pre-season and everyone is able to play, so we're all enjoying each other's company, working hard get fit.

"But things look different when suddenly you're on the bench. That's when the true personalities will start to show and I hope that we're going to be OK. We still have experienced players but now we have the positive, new, young players who are hungry and motivated, which is great.

"The challenge for them is to show they are not just here by accident, that they are quality players who deserve to be a part of this Chelsea team."

Chelsea have also welcomed Kevin de Bruyne into the fold after signing him from Genk in January.