Caprari, Ekdal and Gabbiadini train with team

The Sampdoria squad were put through their paces in Bogliasco this afternoon, as preparations for the start of the season really get into gear, with the club in Coppa Italia action away to Crotone on Sunday evening (21:00 CEST kick-off).

There was a pleasant surprise for everyone at the training ground, with Dennis Praet visiting the Mugnaini to say goodbye to his former team-mates, coach and all the coaching staff.

New arrival Mehdi Leris took part in training for the first time as a Samp player, which consisted of a combination of fitness and technical warm-up drills on pitch two, as well as fitness, technical and tactical work on pitch one. Gianluca Caprari, Albin Ekdal and Manolo Gabbiadini underwent group tests to evaluate how their respective recoveries over the last week have been going. Eusebio Di Francesco’s charges will be back in training on Wednesday morning.