Scolari won't boss us about, says Deco

Deco, who joined Chelsea from Barcelona for £7.9million this summer, knows both managers better than most having played under Mourinho at Porto and Scolari with Portugal.

While the duo both tend to earn the complete trust and respect of each member of the squad, the midfielder says there are fundamental differences in their method. For while Mourinho would leave nothing to chance and order the team to follow his instructions implicitly, Scolari likes to give his players more freedom.

Deco revealed: "Scolari's a great coach. Not only is he always trying to set new standards tactically, but he also shows a lot of respect to his players.

"He is demanding but he also accepts that players see things on the field that should be changed. You can just go ahead and do it, as long as it's for the team's sake. You know what's what with him. It is great to be working with Scolari again and together we hope to do very good things for Chelsea.

"He'll do fine in the Premier League. There won't be any language barrier - he speaks the language of football. He likes exciting play with a bit of aggression. Everyone will adore him.

"Both Mourinho and Scolari are strong personalities. Mourinho is more of a 'provocateur'. But you should not compare them. Let Scolari do his job and judge him for that."

Deco is settling quickly into life at Chelsea, although he has so far escaped the ritual enforced on every new signing at Stamford Bridge of having to sing a song in front of his team-mates.

At the moment he is not sure which tune to entertain the squad with, but in light of Sir Alex Ferguson's comments about Chelsea's ageing squad, he may want to consider something like D:Ream's Things Can Only Get Better.

Ferguson began his mind games early by questioning whether Chelsea can improve with so many players in their 30s. Deco is one of nine players in the squad aged 30 or more, but is confident he can become better with age. He added: "I still have things to learn even though I am over 30. I see Chelsea as a new challenge."

Deco showed his talent in the club's 4-0 win over Guangzhou Pharmaceutical which was the club's first friendly of the pre-season tour to Asia, yet is still looking for improvement throughout the team in the second against Chengdu Blades in Macau tomorrow.

It will be the last time Chelsea fans get to see Salomon Kalou in a blue shirt for a few weeks as he joins up with the Ivory Coast squad to play in the Olympics. As a result, he will miss the start of the season. Kalou is hoping he has made a big impression on Scolari as he finally sees a chance to play to his full potential under the Brazilian.

He said: "Since I've been at Chelsea I've played in every position along the front, left-winger and right-winger, but this season it looks like I will have the chance to play as a second striker.

"I've been getting better every year at Chelsea and I'm going to do my best to try and impress the manager. Even though I'm not starting the season with them I will fight and do my best."