Valter di Salvo on United's training and getting ready for the season. From the Official site.
"We've planned a large part of our pre-season around the qualifying match because we know how important it is to everybody,"
"I knew Debrecen's fitness levels would be very good because they are currently in the middle of their season. But I believe we are ready for the match and the players are all in good condition both physically and technically.
"This year we divided the pre-season period into three parts," he continues. "The first part was spent in Portugal where the players took part in one training session per day during our week-long stay.
"After a lengthy period of rest over the summer, it's impossible for the players to start intense training immediately because there is a higher risk of them picking up injuries.
"The second phase of our programme involved two weeks work at Carrington where we increased the training intensity, while the final part was based around the tour and the four matches we played in the Far East.
"The time difference meant some of the players struggled to acclimatise and suffered with jetlag, while the weather
conditions were completely different to those in the UK - it was extremely hot with very high humidity levels. Nevertheless, I think the players reached a good level of fitness whilst we were there and I was happy with how things went.
"Last summer was a difficult one because the players that had been involved in the European Championships and the Olympics were still on holiday when we started our pre-season programme," recalls Valter. "So we didn't really get enough time to prepare them for the season.
"That's why we created a special programme this time round to ensure we're ready for the new campaign and in the right condition for both the European qualifier and the start of the Premiership."