It was a pre-season opener to remember as the Blues put six past the Wanderers in Sydney during an entertaining contest that produced end-to-end action until the final whistle. Jamie etched his name onto the scoresheet to make it three-a-piece after the break, before Joao Pedro secured the win with a nine-minute hat-trick.

After a ‘frustrating’ debut campaign in Blue, during which Jamie was hampered by absences through injury, the 21-year-old believes he is now making positive progress towards finding consistency in a Chelsea shirt.

‘I'm feeling better now,’ Gittens said, speaking after the full-time whistle in Australia. ‘My injuries are healing up now, so I feel really good. I feel in a good space with the team and in my body as well.

‘Of course it has been frustrating, but with God’s grace I got through it, and he pulled me up today, so it's just great to score a goal. To be back on the pitch with the team was really good.’

Sliding the ball under the goalkeeper from close range after latching onto the end of Joao Pedro’s solo run, Jamie gave the Blues the impetus to go and win the match, and as well as being satisfied in finding the net, Gittens praised the quality of the opposition.

‘Western Sydney Wanderers fought a good game, they did really well,’ he continued. ‘They were very aggressive and on the front foot to score. Scoring four goals, they've done a good job against us.

‘For me, to score goals in any game is always a positive. That's what I want to keep doing in the future as well.’

Jamie also reserved a special mention for the manager Xabi Alonso, who took his seat in a dugout for the first time as Blues boss. Gittens highlighted the effect Alonso has had on him and the squad since starting work in July.

‘He's been very hands-on with me, especially,’ Gittens explained. ‘He’s been very - how would I call it - positive towards me. He's a great coach and a great guy to be around.

‘For him to be giving me advice in these games and training sessions is the best thing for me and for the team as well, especially. So I'm grateful that he is our coach.’

There are still five pre-season matches to come before we kick off our Premier League campaign away at Fulham, with four of them to come while on tour in Asia and Oceania. And Gittens wanted to highlight how important it is to get the group together for an extended period of time.

Jamie said: ‘It’s great for team spirit, especially to get to know each other again. It's been the whole summer break that we've been away from each other, so to be back with them and get some more games and build more confidence is the best thing for us.’

And with Tottenham up next, this Saturday live on CFC+ with kick-off at 10.45am UK time, Jamie is determined to keep his and the Blues’ positive progress going.

He added: ‘It's still a derby, so you've got to win the game, of course, to get a good feeling out of that. That'll be a good game for sure.’