Mason Holgate says there was “no holding back” when Everton resumed limited contact training this week – and the defender is vowing to be “ready to go” when the Blues return to Premier League action.

The introduction of phase two of ‘Project Restart’ on Thursday coincided with an announcement that the league plans to start playing again on 17 June following a three-month suspension because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Carlo Ancelotti's squad trained together for the first time since March two days ago following a seven-day period when sessions were limited to 75 minutes and featured five-strong groups following social distancing rules.

Holgate was playing the best football of his Everton career before the season was paused and manager Ancelotti had been in charge only 10 weeks when the 23-year-old signed new five-year terms with the Club three months ago.

Everton’s first session with a full complement of available personnel since 12 March featured possession drills and a 10v9 practice match, releasing players to engage in tackling while minimising any unnecessary close contact

“There was no hesitation [going into challenges] whatsoever,” Holgate told evertonfc.com.

“We all quickly got our heads round the season starting again and were ready to go back to contact training.

“You can’t hold back when you're playing and competing.

“The season is scheduled to start soon and it is something we need to do.

“It was good to feel you were training properly and wasn't hugely different from what we’d have been doing in a normal session.

“Once you are playing, you forget what is going on away from football.

“It is a difficult time for everybody and people’s lives and health are clearly more important than anything.

“But when you are playing, your mind is totally on football.

“You don’t think about anything apart from what is happening in the game.

“We were all curious to see what we could do in training, we were told so many things ahead of going back, so it was interesting to see how it went.

“It has been handled brilliantly by the Club and everyone feels completely safe at the training ground.”

Holgate insisted the initial phase of training which began on 20 May with players grouped according to positions provided a valuable grounding prior to this week’s loosening of restrictions.

Everton’s players were away from USM Finch Farm nearly 10 weeks after the season stalled with the Blues 12th in the Premier League table but only six points behind Wolverhampton Wanderers in sixth.

With 27 points up for grabs in a condensed period if the proposed timetable to complete 2019/20 is confirmed, Holgate maintains the possibility of European qualification represents a huge incentive for his side.

The potentially crowded fixture list, meanwhile, means players’ workloads don’t replicate those they’d experience when returning from a summer break.

“The sessions haven’t felt like a normal pre-season, they are not as hard physically,” said Holgate.

“Nobody has dealt with this sort of situation and training has to be quite measured so we are ready when the time comes to play – and I am sure we will be.

“The first week was different with no contact but we were in groups with players in our positions and could work on plenty of aspects of our play – they were good sessions.

“I am excited about football coming back.

“When you know you have nine games left, you want to get on with it and be playing.

“It is difficult to replicate what you’d normally do when you’re in lockdown, you’re not going to retain your match fitness, but I feel in good condition.

“With one week under our belts and the training to come I am sure I will be ready to go as soon as it is time to play.

“If teams above us drop points we want to be the ones taking advantage and moving into the European spots.

“The only way that can happen is to concentrate on ourselves and win as many of those nine games as possible.”

Holgate made his first tackle in more than two months on Leighton Baines during a possession exercise.

He replies with an emphatic “No”, accompanied by a laugh, when asked if it was a good one.

But the Yorkshireman is encouraged by the advances already made by his team in a short period.

“I’m not running round smashing people on the first day of training,” added Holgate.

“Everyone is easing their way into it and Thursday was a day for us to get into the swing of things and used to playing again.

“It was the first time I’ve seen a lot of the players since lockdown. I’ve missed being with the boys and it was difficult being away that long.

“It was great seeing them all and everyone has come back in good shape.

“We’ve followed our programmes and are all at a similar level and already feeling the benefits of being back.”