Man City academy build set to begin

Manchester City are to beginning to work on a state-of-the-art academy to be ready for the start of the 2014/15 English Premier League season.

The training facility will also be available to the first-team and will be built adjacent to Etihad Stadium on an 80-acre site, with BAM Construction, part of the Royal BAM Group, chosen as their construction partner for the project.

The City Football Academy as it shall be known, will provide a centre for up to 400 young players as well as housing the new training base for the first-team and operational functions.

Former Arsenal, Inter Milan and Juventus midfield Patrick Vieira, now a football executive at Manchester City, believes the project is not only a hugely exciting one but necessary in helping to shape the future of the club.

“What I find really exciting about the project is that before designing the facilities they have been to the football world, the basketball world and the NFL world, so a lot of hard work has been done around the project,” Vieira said.

“That is why I believe it is the best project around in all sports because people have spent a lot of time travelling around the world and trying to capture the best in every sport and bring it here.

“It is a long-term commitment from the football club and I am really excited about it because once you see the pictures, then you can’t wait for the work to start.

“I think the club are creating something fantastic because when you are a footballer you want to develop yourself and are looking for the best facilities to do so.

“I think those facilities will give all the young players from the youth to the first-team the chance to improve themselves and to challenge themselves.

“Especially for the youth, because when you bring a young talented player to your club, you want to give them the best chance to achieve their dream of playing for our first-team and I think those facilities will give them what they will need to improve themselves.

“Something really clear is that since Sheikh Mansour has taken over he always wanted the club to be sustainable, and I think that this proves that is really important to him.

“So this is a long-term project and the club is going up and the project makes it really exciting.”

The development will also include up to 200 classrooms, on-site accommodation for both senior and junior players, staff offices, a dedicated media centre and 16.5 football pitches, 12 of which have been dedicated to players aged from eight to 21.

Designs will feature a state-of-the-art first-team building with changing rooms, gym, refectory and injury and rehab centre and a 7000-capacity stadium for youth-team matches, while there will be a bridge linking the new facility to Etihad Stadium close by.