George Evans believes Derby County's squad will reap the benefits of a tough pre-season heading into the new campaign, which starts with a Carabao Cup First Round tie against Sky Bet League Two newcomers Barrow on Saturday (12pm kick-off).
The Rams returned to pre-season training at the start of August, after a two-and-a-half-week break following the conclusion of the 2019/20 campaign.
It has been a shorter, and more unusual, pre-season for the players following the COVID-19 outbreak which disrupted football for more than three months.
Evans, who last week signed a one-year contract extension taking his contract up until the summer of 2022, played 76 minutes in Derby’s final pre-season outing against Premier League side Sheffield United on Tuesday night as preparation step up for the new campaign.
And he has been impressed with pre-season preparations this summer and feels he is in great shape.
“It’s been brilliant,” he told RamsTV following the 2-0 loss to Sheffield United. “It’s been a good pre-season and one of the toughest that I’ve done. All the lads are feeling fit and strong.
“On a personal note, I do feel fit. I think it has been a positive pre-season and I’m looking forward to getting the season going as well.
“There is going to be a lot of midweek games this year and I think we are ready for that. Pre-season was vital in terms of making sure we were fit so we are ready for those games and I think we are in a position where we can do so now.
“We worked really hard, and I think everyone is in a good physical state now to make sure we hit the ground running and get the games going and everyone can feel a benefit from.”
Since his arrival from Reading, who the Rams face on the opening day of the new 2020/21 Sky Bet Championship campaign, in the summer of 2018, the 25-year-old has found a regular run in the side hard to come by due to injuries.
Heading into his third season at Pride Park Stadium, he is now hoping those problems are behind him and he can now look forward to a positive future with the Rams.
“It was a frustrating time mentally and physically,” he said.
“I got a little run in the team and picked up a few little injuries so I was unfortunately out longer than expected but I’m praying it’s all behind me now because I want to kick on in my Derby career now and I’m praying these next two years can be positive for me.”
And he couldn’t be more delighted to have extended his stay with the club until 2022.
“It’s a fantastic club and since I’ve been here, I’ve absolutely loved my time here so when I heard there was an option to extend then I was over the moon to make sure I can stay,” he admitted.
“I love it here and it’s a great place to play my football so I’m delighted to be a part of this great club for a bit longer.”