Kelvin Mellor insists City are taking positive steps towards a successful campaign, after Gary Bowyer’s men returned to pre-season training earlier today.
The Bantams defender is fully aware of what a tough, demanding few months he and his team-mates are in for as preparations for the new season get underway - but insists it is not anything he is not used to.
Speaking after the first session of the day, Mellor said: “Pre-season never gets any easier, but we are all delighted to be back in training and are looking forward to getting into the swing of things.
“We had a meeting with Gary (Bowyer) this morning and he said the standards have got to be higher than they were last year.
“It is going to be a tough, long pre-season but we will get through it and will hopefully be better for it, next season.
“We have to grit our teeth, stay fit and get on with it.”
The right-back is already more than familiar with boss Bowyer, having worked with him at Blackpool, and has backed up the City chief’s words about rebuilding the club’s identity over the coming months.
Mellor sees this pre-season as a crucial period in the club’s future and has welcomed the changes which have already been implemented.
The 28-year-old added: “It is about taking it step by step at the moment, but I think we are making positive progress.
“First things first, we all need to be fit enough to complete 90 minutes and then take it from there.
“You can run all day long, but you cannot beat match fitness. It is good to have as many friendlies as we do, with some tough ones in there, too.
“It has been a busy off season for the manager, he has brought in a lot of new faces and some really good players.
“Hopefully we can get that togetherness in the squad to take us where we want to be, which is back out of this league, getting promoted.”