GRAHAM Alexander reckons City are “90 per cent” there as they ready themselves for League Two combat again.

The squad are into their final week of pre-season preparation ahead of Saturday’s testing curtain-raiser at promotion favourites MK Dons.

Alexander has been encouraged by the efforts of his players during a demanding build-up and believes they are now at the level fitness-wise that he had planned.

But the added match sharpness, the Bantams boss admits, will only come when they are playing regularly again.

Alexander said: “We’re where I hoped we would be after five weeks. We’re still not the finished article.

“There’s still a lot of sharpness and the repeated sprints, repeated efforts and the endurance that will come with us. But that only happens into the season.

“The (league) games are always different. The build-up, the tempo, it’s all different.

It has been Graham Alexander's first pre-season as City bossIt has been Graham Alexander's first pre-season as City boss (Image: Max Lomas)

“As much as you can try to manufacture that pace and tempo into the friendlies, it’s never really there.

“We know where we have to try and get to and we’re probably 90 per cent ready for the season.

“That final 10 per cent comes in during the first three, four or five games for each individual.”

City knew they would be put through the wringer in their first pre-season under Alexander and assistant Chris Lucketti.

The players had been warned to expect a more physically intense programme than they had experienced last year with previous boss Mark Hughes.

“There’s a bit more to do on our sharpness and doubling down on the tactical side,” added Alexander.

“The main part is there, certainly the base level fitness.

“The players have worked exceptionally hard, not just in the last month but also previously with the off-season programme. I can’t credit them enough for that.

“We’ve got the base for our game and now it’s just about getting down to the finer details and sharpening up the players physically. All of those things come into this stage now.

“We’ve come off them a little bit with the volume of training but the intensity is just as high.

“It always takes a bit of time but the challenge is there. We have to try and compete and win games from day one.

“But I think the players have put a great amount of work into the five weeks we’ve been in and the period before that.

“They are as ready as they could be at this stage.”

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