Man City release fly-on-the-wall documentary showing their restart preparations

Manchester City have released the first of a three-part behind the scenes documentary about how the club have ramped up their restart plans as they prepare to return to the Premier League.

Football fans have been starved of any action since March due to the coronavirus suspension but City have decided to film what they have been up to at the Etihad Campus to give their supporters a glimpse.

A series of strict measures were shown off in the clip, posted on the club's social media channels, ensuring they kept stars safe and virus free ahead of their return to the training pitch - but the most surprising was players being kept in their cars as they arrived to be tested.

In the first episode of City Restart, officials are seen planning for the first team to come back after Government approval, with Mark Roberts, chief of the Etihad Campus, insisting it was vital that everyone - from players to the staff - remaining in their vehicles for their COVID-19 check.

Winger Raheem Sterling is the first to be spotted in his car as he speaks to a doctor, before midfielder Rodri is seen having his examination under a special testing marquee set up in the car park.

A club doctor is seen putting a swab in his mouth and throat, with centre-back Aymeric Laporte also spotted having his test.

Ahead of the squad's official return to socially distanced training, club staff begin to bring in boxes containing player kits and boots, while other put up signs and paint arrows around the campus directing stars where to go to make sure they head straight to the pitch.

Meanwhile, housekeeping crews are assembled and shown giving every room a comprehensive clean, with workers scrubbing gym equipment and placing a sign when each location has been attended to.

Medical huts and marquees are installed around the training pitch with a sanitising team brought in to spray a powerful cleaning product around the entire facility, with everything from goalposts to the kitchen area being disinfected.

John Stones and Sergio Aguero lead the first group of stars arriving for training, with only five allowed in at a time. Acknowledging the difficulty of filming the players while maintaining their distance, the TV crews decide to use robotic cameras, placing them on the pitch and using a PlayStation controller to operate them.

As further members of the first-team filter in, including Leroy Sane, they are forced to park three spaces apart before having their temperatures checked.

The players are then put through their paces spread out across the pitch drills as a coach wearing a mask admits the difficulties they face in getting back in the swing of things following such a long time away from football.

Finally, Pep Guardiola, wearing a face-mask, arrives for a distanced interview and asked if he is glad to be back in training.

'Yes of course, especially on such a sunny day,' he tells the media team.

'Yeah, it's nice to come back, of course. We don't do anything special. The doctors, nurses, scientists, cleaners... in a special situation around the world, you have to adapt.'

The next episode is set to show how the squad fared after getting the go-ahead to start contact training.

All but out of the Premier League title race with Liverpool 25 points ahead, Man City will resume action on the first gameweek back as they take on Arsenal at home on June 17.