With the schedule for this season`s pre-season blogs starting a few days in, you will all no doubt be fully versed as to where we are located and, to a point, what`s been happening.But if, for any explicable reason, you`re devoid of any such information, you`ve come to the right place.This season, we have returned to the beautiful base that we enjoyed last year, Cascais, located on the Estoril coast, some 30 kilometres west of the Portuguese capital, Lisbon.And what an incredibly exciting time to be a Brentford fan. There have been well-documented changes both on and off the pitch, but I, for one, see it as a really positive step forward, rather than what can happen when there`s a change at the top and in the squad, which at times can momentarily halt progress and set things back.There`s a real vibrancy with the introduction of a newly-assembled coaching team and the injection of high-calibre players. All in all, I’m absolutely buzzing and can`t wait for the season to kick off.I appreciate that I’m in a privileged position as I see the players and coaching staff on a daily basis and get to see their qualities both as athletes and as people whilst, as fans, many of you have to live your love for the club during the close season through social media, tabloids and word of mouth, which as you know can so often give a jaundiced and biased view.My biased view from very close range is to trust the Brentford way and prepare yourself for a very special and exciting season.But back to our training camp, and the training has been intense as one would expect. The training takes place at Cidade do Futebol (as it did last year), which is about twenty minutes from our hotel. It is the Portuguese equivalent of our own St. George's Park.The set-up, as one would expect of an international team`s base, is first-class and nothing is left wanting. In fact, in addition to there being excellent facilities in all areas, Brentford is branded everywhere. That never happened when pre-season used to consist of running up and down hills in Richmond Park! Yes, we’ve come a very long way in a comparatively short space of time.I flew out on Sunday, some 24 hours after the main party, so I missed yesterday’s double training session. But on catching up with some of the football staff subsequently, they were all of the opinion that it was particularly successful and, in fact, an upgrade, performance-wise, on the same time last season, which bodes well.Apparently, the looks on the players’ faces were far happier than those which were evident directly prior to their 2-kilometre runs upon returning over the past couple of weeks!So today, Monday, following an invigorating swim in the sea at 7am along with a number of staff members, followed by a few players, I look forward to watching our 2025/26 footballing heroes preparing for yet another season in the Premier League, and reporting back to you in the next blog.
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