Captain Carl Baker is looking forward to getting back out on the pitch for the Sky Blues....
Coventry City captain Carl Baker believes the squad are 'weeks ahead' of where their fitness should be as the preparations for the 2013/14 League One season go into its second week.
The City captain, who won both the Player of the Year and the Players' Player of the Year for the 2012/13 season, will be looking to continue the form he showed last season into next season.
The former Stockport County man made 55 appearances for the Sky Blues, scoring 15 goals in all competitions as he revelled in the role as captain.
With the first pre-season game coming up this Saturday against Nuneaton, Baker can't wait to get back on the pitch for City.
The 30-year old said: "I am really looking forward to it. Nuneaton is a really big pitch as well so if the weather continues how it is, it should be quite a test of where we are at.
"I am hoping our fitness levels will shine through and put on a good display for the fans. Obviously, it is all about the fitness but it will be nice to get some wins under our belts.
"We've got a lot of young lads coming through so it will be a great boost to them if we can get the right result there.
"They beat us last year in a difficult match and I am sure they have got stronger this year so we have to be up for it."
With pre-season now into its second week and a trip to Holland coming up, Baker believes the fitness levels in the group is the best he has ever seen.
He continued: "I think this is around my 12th or 13th pre-season now and I think this is the sharpest it has ever been in the first week of pre-season.
"We are weeks ahead of where we should be and that is testament to the staff so gave us the right plans to follow before we came back.
"We are putting in the hours and there is no-one in the group who is shying away from it. There is no way any other team is as fit as us at this stage of pre-season.
"We need to keep up those high standards and make sure we are primed and ready to attack the season."