Sone Aluko says the huge reward of facing Chelsea on the opening day of the season is pushing him through what he knows will be a tough pre-season at Hull City.
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The Nigerian made a successful return from injury in Monday's 6-0 friendly win at Winterton, coming through 70 minutes unscathed in his first outing for six months.
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The 24-year-old has faced a long battle to come back from the Achilles injury which ruled him out of City's promotion push in the Championship.
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And delighted with his first outing, he is now looking to step-up his progress on the Tigers' training camp in Portugal.
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"It was good to be out there (against Winterton) and playing again, that was the main thing," Aluko told the Mail.
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"I enjoyed it. It was good to be back as a team, but this is just the start.
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"The first game back is always tough, especially after the break from playing that I've had.
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"It was just another building block towards that first game and playing in the best league in the world.
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"The real reward will come when we get to play in the Premier League. That's the main reward."
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Despite Steve Bruce erring on the side of caution by selecting Aluko to play in the least competitive of City's two games on Monday, he was involved in some heavy challenges early on, and showed no sign of looking to protect his recent injury, and says he is confident it is ready for the rigours of a tough pre- season.
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"It's not an injury which is a problem with tackles, it's a repetitive one to do with playing a lot of games and training," he said.
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"I should have seen the first challenge I took coming, but was not really as switched on as I should have been so I couldn't avoid it. Luckily, it didn't hurt though."
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Having started last season in superb form, Bruce called Aluko the best player in the Championship, and has already backed him to be a hit in the Premier League.
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Showing signs of that attacking potency on Monday, Aluko looked ready to return and play a key role in City's aims for the coming season.
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The Tigers will start the season looking to prove the pundits wrong and avoid an immediate return to the Championship, but for now, Aluko is not concerning himself with targets for either himself or the side, and instead looking to ensure City are ready when they walk out at Stamford Bridge on August 18.
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"At the start of the season, I'll set myself a few goals, but at present I'm just looking at getting a good pre- season under my belt, getting back to full fitness and nothing more than that," he said.
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"I'm looking forward to getting to know the new lads in the team in Portugal.
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"Obviously, we've got another two games out there which will help us to build up our fitness and get some more minutes in. It's pre-season and it's not the most enjoyable part of the year, but we need to get it done. I'm already looking forward to playing again."