Fernandes trains at the Mugnaini, double session on Wednesday

Marco Giampaolo’s Sampdoria trained for the first time this week on Tuesday afternoon. The Bluerchiati have begun preparations in earnest for their Serie A opener away at Empoli on Sunday night. The latest recruit Bruno Fernandes joined his team-mates for training in Bogliasco for the first time – the Portuguese was recently involved for his country at the Olympic games.

The midfielder worked alongside his team-mates who barely or failed to feature against Bassano in the cup, including Daniel Pavlovic. The session began with muscle activation in the gym, before a warm-up on the upper pitch and a series of short, sharp training games on a small pitch.

The rest of the squad focused on recovery on the pitch and in the pool. Leandro Castan was afforded time off. The group will train twice on Wednesday.