Liverpool reveal major academy overhaul plans
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Liverpool have unveiled plans for a £20 million renovation of their academy.
The production line at their Kirkby centre of operations will undergo its first facelift since being officially opened in 1998 with seismic changes set to take place.
Chief anong them is the current main pitch at the Premier League champions’ youth base, which will be attached to the existing building by a dome for indoor use.
A new grass pitch will be created in the outdoor setting with a stand able to hold up to 500 spectators replacing the existing pitch for prestige youth-level fixtures.
The Reds’ former sporting director Julian Ward, now technical director for owners Fenway Sports Group, has influenced the plans following extensive research.
Improved medical and sport science facilities will also be included alongside a training area following an initial £2m improvement of the existing facility.
Cages for small-sided matches have already been installed alongside athletic development and skills areas plus a padbol court, which fuses football, tennis, volleyball and squash.
New floodlights are also in place to ensure all pitches can be used at later times throughout the calendar year rather than just in daylight hours.
Academy director Alex Inglethorpe said: “It’s a big statement.
“The owners have embarked on a number of infrastructure projects in recent years with the redevelopment of the two stands at Anfield, building the AXA Training Centre to put us all on one site here at Kirkby, and giving Melwood a facelift for the women’s team to go there.
“We’ve always been patient as an academy, knowing where we sit in the order of things, but now it’s our turn and it’s really exciting.
“We’ve never had a full-size indoor facility before that would match up with a lot of our competitors.
“While I’m all for toughening them up in the Kirkby wind and rain, there are a lot of days when we have to cancel training or the quality of a session is compromised.