Bayern Munich utility player Raphael Guerreiro has returned to training at the Bundesliga club following the ankle injury which ruled him out of Portugal's Euro 2024 campaign.
The 30-year-old, who was injured at the end of May, has started his first big steps to recovery at Bayern's training ground. Serge Gnabry had already come in last week as he seeks full fitness after an injury-hit season which cost him a place in Germany's Euro squad.
The rest of the players are not due back at Bayern for the start of pre-season until July 15, with Euro stars given extra time off depending on how far their nations went in the tournament.
In contrast, Heidenheim players were back for their first day of pre-season training on Monday.
The Bundesliga club performed a miracle last season in their debut top-flight campaign, finishing eighth and qualifying for the Conference League.
Coach Frank Schmidt was eyeing new arrivals.
"We still have needs in the back line," said the coach, who watched the start of preparations on crutches following an ankle operation.
"As far as the back four is concerned, we were lucky last season that we hardly had any injured or suspended players. It's possible that we'll do something about that."
Eight new signings plus Christopher Negele, who has moved up from the club's youth programme, have been brought in so far. There has been a shake-up in attack in particular after Tim Kleindienst left for Borussia Mönchengladbach and Eren Dinkci returned to Freiburg.
"With the changes in the squad, it's a bit of a fresh start," said Schmidt. "It will be a huge challenge, the Bundesliga demands everything from us. It's all about staying in the league, which is why it's important for us to form a team now."