Dean, who has already added to his squad with the signing of Andy Cook, Josh Ginnelly, Chris Dunn and Zeli Ismail, insists the squad will be kept busy and will do plenty of running, but is keen to make it a fun experience as he believes that the players can still improve their fitness whilst working on the tactical side of play.
Speaking via the Express & Star, Dean said; "They’ll be doing running – but it will be disguised running. We did one real run on the first day but that was more for the sports science side of things. We needed to look at heart rates and to know if we are doing enough with some players or maybe too much with some players. There was only one run they did without a ball and that was for data. Everything else was with the ball.
"Things have changed from the days when you come in and go ‘bang, do a 10-mile run’. Every manager has their own philosophy and how they want to do it. But that is not the way I want to operate. I think if you play with a football, it’s not just all about running. It’s important to get the mentality right. Everything we do will be done with a ball.
"But if they don’t do it right with the ball, we can put them away and they can just run. But I do want it to be enjoyable. We are football players, we aren’t runners, It’s a big part of my game and was a big part of my game when I was a player. But I believe in getting fit with a football."