PRE-SEASON at Cherries is due to begin on Monday, but it will look quite different to previous years.

Just three weeks have passed since Cherries' relegation from the Premier League was confirmed on the final weekend of July.

But, in less than a month's time, the new league campaign will have begun with the opening day of the Championship set for September 12.

Jason Tindall's first game in charge could instead be a Carabao Cup tie, but that is still to be confirmed with international call-ups likely to cause some cup games to be postponed.

Recent years have seen the Cherries squad head off for a tour to the USA or La Manga in Spain and also play back-to-back pre-season friendlies against European giants such as Lazio and Lyon at Vitality Stadium.

But due to the ongoing worldwide restrictions caused by COVID-19, as well as the limited time between seasons, the Daily Echo understands Cherries are planning to play just three pre-season friendlies ahead of the season beginning, all based in England.

In the past, Cherries have generally played at least six warm-up matches.

All members of the squad are due back in for pre-season testing on Monday, meeting up as a group for the first time since former assistant Tindall was named as Eddie Howe's successor.

Asmir Begovic and Harry Arter, who spent last season out on loan, are also set to come back to the club during pre-season, although their returns could be slightly later given their seasons at loan clubs AC Milan and Fulham finished later than Cherries.

As is often the case during the summer break, players jetted off across the globe for holidays to destinations such as Mykonos, Monte Carlo and Ibiza.

After the 2019-20 campaign finished, it is understood players were each issued with a letter by Cherries, informing them when they would need to be back in training, reminding them to stick to government guidelines and represent the club in the right way whilst they were off.

It is understood all Cherries players are now back in the country and they have each been trusted to follow the respective quarantine rules when returning to the UK from their holidays and all are expected in as planned on Monday.

Players will then all be COVID tested upon their returns to the club, as they were regularly during Project Restart.