Her withdrawal from the England squad earlier this summer allowed the centre-back time to have surgery, recover and also recharge after a busy few years with club and country.

Bright has also been able to refocus her goals and when we sat down with the skipper at our Netherlands training camp, one word immediately sprang to mind when we asked her to sum up what she wants to see from the side this year.

‘Intensity,’ Bright replied. ‘I think playing at a higher intensity means we have a better opportunity of winning in the biggest games against the best opponents. If we’re able to consistently play with a high level of intensity and do it better than any other team, then we’ll win.

‘That's what's required at this level. The women’s game is so competitive, and we've seen in the games where we fell a little bit short, it was all down to intensity. I’ve reminded the girls of the game against Manchester City at Stamford Bridge, where we had the best comeback I’ve ever seen or been a part of.

‘If we play at that intensity, we will beat anyone. And that is the difference.’

Bright speaks with the confidence of a player who has seen it all over the course of her career. And when it comes to making important decisions about her own well-being, no one knows the captain better than she knows herself.

While the choice to withdraw from the England side was undoubtedly a tough one to make, she felt it was a decision she had to take.

‘The summer was definitely needed,’ Bright continued. ‘I decided to get my knee sorted and get the surgery done. It was important for me to mentally accept that I wasn't where I needed to be, and I wanted to be able to go into this season in a good place mentally and physically.

‘It meant I had time to reflect on the season; on everything we achieved. When you’re playing, there’s no time to look back and appreciate what you've done collectively or process your emotions, so this summer I was able to do that.

‘I'm not afraid to say I made the right decision for myself. I feel like a new person and ready to go to another level.

‘I want to play every minute of every game. I'm the captain. I want to be leading the girls; I want to be dragging everyone through and making sure we're always in the right place in terms of performance.’

After being a key member of the England side that won the European Championship in 2022 and reached the World Cup final in 2023, this time around, Bright was watching the tournament from home.

While that was a situation Bright wasn’t accustomed to, our captain adjusted her mindset to make the best of the situation and concentrated on supporting the team alongside the rest of the nation.

‘I was watching as a fan because it’s not always easy to watch games as a player,' she said. 'You can get exhausted by going through all the same emotions as you would if you were on the pitch.

'I told myself that I would stay in that fan mentality. It was great to see the next generation coming through, and I’m really proud that we're evolving instead of standing still as a nation. We're preparing people for what’s next, and soon we'll be in the next era; that's the way it works.

‘I really enjoyed watching the Chelsea girls representing England at the Euros and lifting another trophy there, becoming back-to-back champions. It was nice to experience it from a different view.’

Now pre-season has begun, a refreshed Bright can now look forward to reaping the rewards of her period of rest.

No matter what she will face once the campaign begins, she’s ready for the new challenges – and new possibilities in a second year of working alongside Sonia Bompastor – to begin.

‘I’m really excited,’ Bright smiles. ‘We had a lot of success last season in our first year working together. Winning the domestic Treble was a fantastic starting point. It’s great to have welcomed new players into the club and to have hit the ground running. I’m having a really good pre-season. It's so nice to have everyone back, and I can't wait for the team to be fully back together again.

‘We’re going to start building towards new goals and new things that we want to achieve, and it's going to be harder than ever. Each season gets tougher as the competition goes up.

‘We're seeing teams make signings and developing, but that's the part that gets you excited.

‘Whether it’s winning the league or the FA Cup or the League Cup – and hopefully one day winning the Champions League – that never gets boring to me.’

Chelsea will start our WSL campaign at home to Manchester City at Stamford Bridge on Friday 5 September. Make sure you don't miss out on the start of our title defence by securing your place now!