Jim Ratcliffe draws up Man Utd plan after being disgusted on tour of training ground
Manchester United are set to undergo a major overhaul of Carrington Training Centre as INEOS and Sir Jim Ratcliffe tries to transform the club’s fortunes.
Ratcliffe is expected to oversee a summer of changes at United after his 25 per cent takeover was confirmed and ratified in February. As well as the playing staff and in the boardroom, alterations are expected to be made to the club’s training complex.
According to the Daily Mail, considerable works are being planned at Carrington with new sporting director Sir Dave Brailsford wanting to see any marginal gain he can find. The multi-million pound redevelopment will include a new ‘pre-activation and player performance’ zone.
United have endured a horrendous campaign with injuries and could be without ZERO first-team central defenders for the trip to Crystal Palace after Harry Maguire was the latest player to be sidelined. Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes and Scott McTominay are among the others to suffer injuries recently.
In a bid to minimise and reduce the amount of injuries, the hope is that a new warm-up area will hope lower the risk of players picking up costly knocks. As well as this, there are plans to increase the amount of natural light that pours into the building with a couple of new giant exterior windows.
Modern office spaces are being planned as the new United board plot a return to the top of European football. Focus on improving the environment within the first-team is paramount, while the club’s laundry will move to a separate building to keep the emphasis inside the building on football.
These plans come after Ratcliffe issued a stern directive to United staff, demanding an improvement in cleanliness after labelling some parts of the club’s stadium and training ground as a “disgrace”.
His email stated: “I had a good tour around the some of the facilities. I am afraid I was struck in many places by a high degree of untidiness. In particular the IT department which frankly was a disgrace and the dressing rooms of the U18 and U21 were not much better.
Manager Erik ten Hag of Manchester United in action during a first team training session
“These standards would not come close to what we would expect at INEOS and we are a chemical company. Manchester United is an elite sporting organisation. It’s a small thing in many ways but unless an organisation has standards and discipline it will not succeed.”
United have been on a hiring spree as they look to restructure the top of the club, with Newcastle director of football Dan Ashworth expected to arrive when an agreement is reached, while Jason Wilcox has been poached from Southampton as technical director.
The Red Devils have had a disappointing season on the pitch but will be hoping to end the campaign on a brighter note. They have four Premier League matches to play, starting with Monday’s trip to Crystal Palace. This is before matches against Arsenal, Newcastle and Brighton.
After the final weekend of the Premier League season, United then face Manchester City in the FA Cup final at the end of May. It’s their last chance of ending the campaign with some silverware, having last won a major trophy in the Carabao Cup last February.
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