Brighton & Hove Albion winger Anthony Knockaert is delighted to be back in pre-season training and is eager to begin preparations for another season in the Premier League.
The Frenchman has kept himself ticking over during the summer and set his sights on improving the team’s 15th-place finish last season.
He said, “It’s very good to see the lads again. I am happy because I was missing everyone here and it’s nice to be back.
“It’s a long time to be away. In the last week I was starting to get bored, so I am happy to be back and ready to start work ahead of the new season.
“I tried to do the fitness programme that the club gave us as much as possible while I was away so that I am ready.
“We don’t need to change our goal, which will be to stay up again in the Premier League once again. It would also be good to improve on our position from last year.”
Knockaert also feels the upcoming training camp in Austria will provide the foundations for another successful campaign in the Premier League.
“The trip will be an important time and a good opportunity for everyone in the squad to meet the new players and be together.
“We have the confidence to start the season well and I am sure that experience will allow us to improve.
“We just need to focus on ourselves. We proved that we’ve got the quality and we showed it last year.”