soccer

Stoke City move into new training facilities

Stoke's Clayton Wood training ground is two miles from their bet365 stadium [Stoke City FC]

Stoke City's first team have moved into new facilities at their Clayton Wood training ground.

The £10m development has taken 15 months to build and includes new and improved performance, recovery, rehabilitation, gymnasium, nutrition and sports science facilities along with a cryotherapy chamber and hydrotherapy pool.

"This is a significant step for the football club and it fills me with great pride to see our new first-team training facility in operation for the first time," said club chairman John Coates.

"Stoke City is my passion and I will continue to do everything in my power to ensure our players and staff have the best environment possible to make us successful."

A view inside Stoke City's new training facility showing players working in a weights room
[Stoke City FC]

Stoke are now planning to redevelop an existing building on the site which will be used by their category one academy and women's team.

The club say it will take the total investment to more than £25m since it was bought.

"Clearly the facilities need to be matched by a culture of relentless hard work, which [sporting director] Jon Walters and [head coach] Mark Robins continue to drive every day, in our long-term pursuit of being better than we have ever been before," added Coates.

Stoke are currently 14th in the Championship table, five points adrift of the play-off places and meet Leicester City on Saturday (12:30 GMT).

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