Michael Essien has insisted that he will try to prove himself back at Chelsea under manager Jose Mourinho.

The Ghana international, who moved to Real Madrid on loan last season, has insisted that he wants to join Mourinho, who left the Bernabeu at the end of the campaign.

"If you ask me if I am back to that level then honestly I say yes," the Daily Mail quotes Essien as saying. "I have got my energy back and I feel I can do a job for the team again. It was important for me to play a lot of games and prove my fitness.

"Now I have, I am happy to play wherever is best for the team. I have got two years left [on my contract]. I have not spoken with Jose about my future yet so I will see if he wants me. When Mourinho wants me to do a job for him, I will do it."

Essien made just 10 starts for the Blues during the 2011-12 campaign.