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Where do Premier League sides train tactics & fitness?

  /  autty

England's top flight is full of different styles of play, but where does each club hone their tactics, fitness and technique?

AFC Bournemouth - King's Park   Bournemouth currently train at King's Park, with the training complex adjacent to their Vitality Stadium. However, plans for a brand new set-up are currently awaiting approval from Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council. The plans are for a complex with nine full-size pitches and three goalkeeper training pitches, on the 57-acre former site of the Canford Magna Golf Club, north of Bournemouth.

Arsenal - London Colney   October 2019 will see Arsenal celebrate their 20th year at the Arsenal Training Complex, usually known as London Colney. Part of Arsene Wenger's enduring legacy at the club, the ground also served as a base for the England national team prior to the construction of St George's Park. Costing some £10 million to build back in 1999, London Colney was in part funded by the sale of Nicolas Anelka to Real Madrid.

Aston Villa - Bodymoor Heath   Bodymoor Heath, to the north-east of Birmingham, has been Aston Villa's home from home since the 1970s. It is currently undergoing redevelopment due in part to the future HS2 railway, which is set to run through part of the current site. However, Villa also believe the site is currently too small for their current needs, and are hoping to be granted permission for a considerable expansion.

Brighton - AMEX Elite Football Performance Centre   Brighton's snappily-named training complex is relatively new, and was granted Category One status after its completion in 2014. However, the Seagulls are already building it up, with a £22 million ($26.8m) expansion proposal approved earlier this year. The complex is notable for the distinctive Y-shaped accomodation, recreation and media building at its centre.

Burnley - Barnfield   Burnley are still settling in to life at Barnfield, having made the move to their new training ground just two years ago. It is close to the National Trust site Gawthorpe Hall, an ornate Elizabethan mansion.  The Clarets spent £10.6 million ($12.9m) on the new site, as part of their efforts to establish themselves as a Premier League club.

Chelsea - Cobham   Chelsea have trained in the Surrey village of Stoke d'Abernon since 2005, though their Cobham training ground didn't officially open its doors for another two years. The club had previously trained in Harlington, a facility which had been in use since the 1970s. Roman Abramovich judged this to be a key area for improvement after his takeover of the club, and the new facilities were backed by Jose Mourinho. Comprising 140 acres, Cobham houses all of Chelsea's teams under one roof - the men, women and youth prospects all using the same facility.

Crystal Palace - Beckenham   The likes of Wilfried Zaha and Aaron Wan-Bissaka are among the players to have come through the ranks at Crystal Palace's base in Beckenham in recent years. Palace had a planning application for an expansion turned down back in 2017, but acquired a 75-year lease for the grounds in December last year. Beckenham was in the headlines for the wrong reasons in 2018 - it was given a zero-star hygiene rating after a local council inspection found a mouse infestation.

Everton - Finch Farm   Finch Farm, close to John Lennon Airport in east Merseyside, has been home to Everton since it officially opened in October 2007. Then among the finest facilities in world football, Finch Farm boasts ten full-size pitches as well as the club's media facilities. A planned expansion is set to go ahead after Everton were granted planning permission in late 2018.

Leicester City - Belvoir Drive   Leicester have been situated at Belvoir Drive for over half a century, since first settling in in 1963. There is a tearful farewell just around the corner, though, with the Foxes finally upping sticks. Their new facility at Charnwood could cost as much as £100 million ($121.6m), and is said to be potentially the most advanced training complex in world football. It will comprise 11 full-size pitches as well as numerous smaller ones and a stunning new central building. It is scheduled for completion in June 2020.

Liverpool - Melwood   Melwood has become almost as synonymous with Liverpool as Anfield over the decades, but it is soon to be no more after Liverpool sold the site to an affordable housing provider. The training ground was famously renovated by Bill Shankly, as it became his base of operations for Liverpool's conquest of England. For years, fans have found ways to peer over the Melwood fences for a glimpse at their side's preparations. Jurgen Klopp is set to lead his side to a new home in West Kirkby, with the move set for next summer.

Manchester City - Etihad Campus   Opened in 2014, the extensive Etihad Campus is one of the most impressive training complexes in the world, just over the road from the Etihad Stadium. The complex, which was reported to have cost around £200 million ($243.2m) has formed an important part of the development of the post-industrial area of East Manchester. With the men's, women's and youth teams all based there, it boasts as many as 16 full-size pitches with countless other facilities. The women's and youth teams play their home fixtures at the 7,000-capacity Academy Stadium.

Manchester United - Carrington   The Trafford Training Centre, generally known as Carrington, has been home to Manchester United since the turn of the millennium, when they moved from their previous home of The Cliff. Carrington saw major renovations in 2013, especially to the medical centre and sports science department, as United looked to stay ahead of the curve in modern football coaching. One of the reasons for the move was Sir Alex Ferguson's annoyance at the easy access The Cliff provided to journalists and opposition scouts.

Newcastle United - Darsley Park   Newcastle have trained at Darsley Park in North Tyneside since 2003, and have seen their fair share of ups and downs in the intervening years. They unveiled ambitious plans for a new training ground back in 2013, but the project never really got off the ground.  Rafa Benitez undertook a minor renovation when he first arrived at the club, but it seems unlikely that Mike Ashley will be shelling out for a new one any time soon.

Norwich City - Colney   The second Colney on the list, Norwich's home is slightly less grandiose than that of Arsenal - but it is undergoing improvements as the Canaries look to make their nest more comfortable. A number of new facilities were added over the summer, with £5 million ($6.1m) set to be spent to bring the complex to state-of-the-art standard. Daniel Farke will be hoping the improvements can help his side kick on following their superb season in the Championship last year.

Sheffield United - Shirecliffe   Chris Wilder's tactical innovations generally take their first steps into the world in Shirecliff, to the North of Sheffield. Oddly enough, the training ground is actually closer to Sheffield Wednesday's stadium of Hillsborough than it is to Bramall Lane. United may go into the new season among the favourites for relegation from the Premier League, but Wilder is certain to have cooked up what he believes is a plan good enough to keep them up.

Southampton - Staplewood   The Saints' training base of Staplewood is over the Solent from St Mary's, and has been the club's home since the 1980s. Redeveloped during Ronald Koeman's tenure back in 2014, the total cost of the project was around £40 million ($48.6m). Southampton's increasing development as a Premier League club has seen other developments around Staplewood, including increased staffing numbers to greater handle the needs of a modern football club.

Tottenham Hotspur - Hotspur Way   Spurs moved to Hotspur Way in Enfield back in 2012, having previously been based in Chigwell since 1996. With 15 grass pitches and one-and-a-half artificial outdoor pitches with floodlighting, Spurs' various teams aren't short of options. More unusually, the complex also includes a wetland and intermittent wetland habitat, which apparently helps to control the flow of water around the site. The environmentally-oriented site was also a temporary home to the USA women's national team ahead of their World Cup win this summer.

Watford - Watford Training Ground   Watford train in St Albans, on the University College London Union (UCLU) Shenley Sports grounds. Last year, the Hornets were granted planning permission for an inflatable dome to cover one of their artificial pitches, but they haven't been allowed to keep it up all year round. They are currently planning an expansion to their stadium Vicarage Road, which is one of the smaller grounds in the Premier League with a capacity of around 21,500.

Wolves - Sir Jack Hayward Training Ground   The £50 million ($60.1m) development of Wolves' home at Compton Park has become one of the symbols of the club's recent rejuvenation. First built in 2005, the club are now unrecognisable since the takeover of the Fosun group helped Wolves set their sights on Europe. Sir Jack Hayward, who passed away in 2015, was born in Wolverhampton and for 17 years was president of his hometown club.