Sources: Inside Enzo Maresca's first full training session

Let's get down to business

Chelsea’s new pre-season has officially gotten underway ahead of our first friendly match against Wrexham in just over two weeks time.

It feels real, it feels fresh, it feels hopeful, and dare I say it, a little bit exciting?

We all have our thoughts and views, and of course, concerns about the club right now and going forward. Many are not convinced about the new manager or the new signings. Many aren’t convinced about the direction we are heading in and the squad we have built. Others are happy and confident too. But I think the majority of us are somewhere in the middle, which is perhaps described as cautiously optimistic going into a new season, and I guess that is where I am at for now.

But that doesn’t stop me getting excited ahead of a new season, I will always get excited about a new season starting regardless of what is going on. It’s a fresh start, a new era, new faces, new goals, and clean slates. I’m going to be fully backing them all until they give me reasons not to. I think we have many reasons to still be optimistic, and I am eager to see what work Enzo Maresca is going to do with this squad.

Well, he certainly put them through their paces yesterday as the majority of the rest of the players came back to Cobham to join those who had already started to filter in.

They started off with some gym and conditioning work after meetings were held between the players and the coaches when they first came back into the building. SPTC sources understand Maresca delivered a heartfelt and motivating speech regarding the season ahead and the goals they want to reach together. He also spoke and detailed his style of play and what he expects from the players. The atmosphere was good.

Then they went out on the pitches to do some fitness work, which was mainly just the bleep test. Malo Gusto came out on top, but there was some pretty impressive efforts from others as well. I didn’t get names of who pulled out first.