First Chelsea training session under Jose Mourinho

Jose Mourinho (file photo) in a Chelsea training session

Let the excitement begin. Pre-season officially started today with the first training session under new manager, Jose Mourinho.

For me, it couldn’t have come at a more perfect time. I had a nice long weekend celebrating Independence Day over here in the US (you know, the day when we commemorate sticking it to the Brits and founding our own country), and as that ends, the excitement of Mourinho’s first few training session-in-charge begins.

I was keeping an eye open for updates on the session as the day progressed, and from what I have seen, everyone seems inspired and excited to make an impression on our new manager.

“Good first day back at Chelsea! Good to see all the lads. #hardwork #dedication” - Josh McEachran on Twitter (@JMcEachran20)

“Great first day @chelseafc :)) great team!! #WorkHard#behappy” – Andre Schuerrle on Twitter (@Andre_Schuerrle)

“Finally home after the first session of the season! Very good to be back #cfc #preseason” - Lucas Piazon (@LucasPiazon)

The excitement being conveyed by some of these younger players is really encouraging to see. I feel like some of the younger talent really has a shot to fight hard, compete, and become a part of the first team this season. With some of the moves Mourinho has made thus far in the transfer window, I have got to believe he truly does have a long-term vision for the club.

He’s signing players for the future, who we can use to bolster the current core of the squad down the road, which is great to see. Some long-term managerial stability is much, much needed at the Bridge.

In addition to the van Ginkel, Schuerrle, and Wallace signings, Mourinho has now made two separate offers for Norwich keeper, John Ruddy. Unfortunately, we’ve been rebuffed both times, the second of which was a £6 million offer that was rejected earlier today.

At 26, I know Ruddy isn’t necessarily a “youth prospect”, but it’s good to see Chelsea making a move for a decent backup keeper without breaking the bank.

Even more exciting is the fact that we’ve still got Thibaut Courtois, and this year he’ll be getting Champions League experience.

We’re heading in the right direction, breeding youth talent to build around the core of our squad. I am excited to hear how the next few days’ worth of training goes, and I can’t wait to hear Mourinho’s evaluations of some of our squad members. Hopefully, in the coming days we’ll get a better feel for what kind of formation he wants to line up with and who his starting XI might be.

Until then, we’ve still got an exciting transfer window to look forward to and I have a strong feeling we’re FAR from finished with transfers for the summer!

(P.S. – Don’t crucify me too harshly for the Independence Day quip — Just a weak attempt at banter from a Yank)