3/1 To Win
Curtis Davies is undertaking his eighteenth pre-season as a professional footballer - but he’s loving it as much as his first.
The 34-year-old wants to put a disappointing 2018/19 season on a personal basis behind him.
The defender missed the opening months of the campaign with a hamstring problem and, upon his return, he sustained a long-term Achilles injury in November which ended his season.
Davies completed the latter stages of his rehabilitation work towards the end of May and resumed full training before the campaign was out.
The defender, like the rest of his team-mates, reported back for pre-season training earlier this week to begin preparations for the upcoming campaign.
Davies is looking forward to facing up to the rigours of another demanding pre-season and has admitted he was excited about for the first day of training to come around.
He told RamsTV: “It’s good to be back and even though I am getting older, I appreciate pre-season.
“After being out with a long-term injury I am happy to be considered one of the fit players and not in the treatment room.
“The start of pre-season was circled in the diary and by reaching the play-offs last season, and the final itself, I was able to get some training in with the team.
“I had two weeks or so training and then it was back to running over the summer, so being back for pre-season I feel like a giddy schoolkid who has just signed their first YTS forms.
“I want to get into the games and have a competitive nature to things again. I’m fit and ready to go and I am looking forward to everything that comes our way.”
Davies added: “I think as you get older and, certainly with how last season worked out for me, you appreciate every pre-season you can get through.
“I want to play for as long as I can. I know how important this time of year is to get ready for the season. If I can get few more of these in then I will have managed to extend my career and play the game I love for as long as possible.”
Derby’s players will fly out to America on Thursday for a 10-day training camp in Florida.
They will also face United Soccer League side Sarasota Metropolis on Wednesday 10th July and fellow Sky Bet Championship outfit Bristol City on Saturday 13th July, both at the IMG Academy, before returning home.
Davies believes having matches on top of a training camp is the perfect way to prepare for the upcoming campaign.
He said: “It’s a shorter pre-season this year and being in America for 10 days will be great.
“I think it’s brilliant that we have some games too, because it changes the mindset rather than just going away and having a training camp.
“We will have great facilities and it will be a real chance to work hard, get some minutes under our belts and then return we will have three more big games before the season starts.”
