Monday, 31st July 2017
Beckenham, South London
The Beckenham training ground was buzzing. The quiet, focused professionalism of our two days in Copenhagen had been replaced by the familiar, high-energy thrum of a club on the up. The sun was out, the pitches were immaculate, and the air was thick with the scent of freshly cut grass and something else: ambition.
I had the full first-team squad assembled in the main briefing room. It was a bigger group than the one that had flown to Denmark. Leaner, hungrier, more competitive. At the front of the room, standing next to me, were Serge Gnabry and Nick Pope. They looked sharp in their new club tracksuits, their expressions a mixture of first-day nerves and professional focus.
