Diogo Dalot declared there are no excuses left for Manchester United as Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Sir Alex Ferguson re-opened the club’s Carrington training ground on Friday after a £50milion refurb.
United’s first-team squad watched co-owner Ratcliffe cut the ribbon to complete the 12-month project and they’ll know the investment has added even more pressure to drastically improve on last season’s 15th-place finish.
Among the range of new benefits at their disposal are altitude chambers, a sports science hub live-tracking training data, a barbers and even smart urinals to detect if a player is dehydrated.
‘A club like Man United should have the best facilities in the world and create a place where you should feel good spending time. You are talking about your second home,’ said Dalot.
‘The biggest thing I like now is that there are no excuses left for us. What we do on the pitch determines whether we put the club back on top.
‘My feeling is a lot of things are changing, in a good way in my opinion. It gives us more energy for the new season.’
Sir Jim Ratcliffe (L) was joined by Sir Alex Ferguson (R) for the official opening on Friday
Ratcliffe has hailed the £50million revamp of Manchester United ‘s Carrington training ground
Special focus has been placed on upgrading equipment and technology at Carrington
Ratcliffe believes the state-of-the-art complex will help build a winning culture at the club
Replicas of some of the club’s trophies adorn one of the staircases at the facility
The project has been worked on for 12 months headed by architect Lord Norman Foster
Dalot even namechecked his legendary Portugal team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo who had complained in his second spell at United that the training ground hadn’t changed since he first arrived in 2003.
‘I am sure Cristiano would love it if he could see it,’ added Dalot. ‘If he asks for a picture, I will send one!’
United had to train in temporary facilities last season during the rebuild.
Renowned architect Sir Norman Foster has made the new Carrington brighter and interconnected. The medical treatment room, previously likened to a dungeon which added to the gloom of injured players, has been rehoused overlooking training pitches to make them feel part of the club.
Ratcliffe said improving the feel of the training ground was essential to United’s ambition of recapturing former glories.
‘There weren’t any windows on the ground floor before. You felt like you were in a hospital,’ he said.
‘Manchester United is the biggest football club in the world. I can testify to that, I travel a lot. The brand is shoulder-to-shoulder with Coca-Cola.
‘We have to compete at the highest level. Whilst a world-class training facility won’t take us to that place alone, it is one of the key ingredients now we have one.’
United say the 12-month project has been completed on time and on budget.
A bust of Sir Matt Busby, United’s first manager to win the European Cup, is prominent on the main staircase to remind players and staff of the standards that need to be reached.
