Diogo Dalot has acknowledged it is imperative for Manchester United's players to give their all in pre-season training to ensure they are in the best shape possible for the beginning of the upcoming campaign.
United's players trained at Carrington during the week commencing July 1 before jetting out to Australia last Sunday, where they since have been preparing for Saturday's friendly against Perth Glory.
“Yeah, of course [it has been hard work],” Dalot said of the squad's intense workouts. “That is why pre-season is hard, because this is the time when we need to push hard and work hard, because it is going to be the first step of the season. Double sessions [or] only one session, we need to go hard in every session.”
Dalot missed United's pre-season tour of the United States 12 months ago after undergoing knee surgery and he is delighted to be involved this time around.
“I missed one good pre-season [and am enjoying] one fit pre-season," he added. "It has been very good to get up from my level and, for me, it has been amazing.”
While he has been enjoying training, the Portuguese is looking forward to getting back out on the pitch and playing some matches.
“I think the games are very important,” he said. “You come from two to three weeks without doing anything, just resting, so it is good to get the team together again and get the new players in as well, just try to get better outside of the pitch and inside of the pitch as well.”
