Czech Republic goalkeeper Petr Cech insists his time at Chelsea has taught him to fear no-one - not even Stamford Bridge team-mate Michael Essien.

The two Premiership title winners will be adversaries in Cologne on Saturday when the Czechs attempt to clinch qualification to the knock-out stage at the expense of Essien's Ghana.

A 3-0 demolition of the USA on the day Ghana were beaten 2-0 by Italy has put the European teams firmly in control of Group E and the 24-year-old was intent on keeping it that way.

He said: "The last three years have given me enough experience to play in the World Cup. I play for Chelsea where there is a lot of pressure on my shoulders so it has been a good schooling to come to Germany.

"You have to have a strong mentality to succeed and playing at Chelsea has given me this. I am not afraid of anyone in the Ghana team. I have a big respect for them as they have some very big players but I am not afraid of anyone."

The victory over the Americans, which featured a sparkling two-goal performance from new Arsenal recruit Tomas Rosicky, came at a cost however as striker Jan Koller joined Aston Villa's Milan Baros on the treatment table after damaging a hamstring early on, although not before he had headed home the opener.

Speculation as to the duo's earliest return is the current obsession of the Czech football writers, with estimates ranging from a place on the bench this weekend to after the tournament.

But coach Karel Bruckner was extremely reluctant to shed any light on the matter, save to confirm he had already decided on his starting line-up, which was also remaining secret.

He did however predict a more testing evening against the Black Stars than the first game. He said: "This will be more difficult because Ghana have three very good midfielders and I expect there will be a tougher test for our defence."

With Baros and Koller absent, the door has opened for Vratislav Lokvenc to take up one of the striking positions and the 32-year-old, who plays his club football in Austria with Salzburg, is an experienced campaigner with more than 70 caps to his name.

Only Pavel Nedved, the 33-year-old Juventus midfielder, and ex-Manchester United man Karel Poborsky, who is a year older, have more and this is likely to be the duo's final chance to win a major tournament, with the Czechs having come close in Euro 2004 by reaching the semi-finals in Portugal.