Under owners Fenway Sports Group, Liverpool have invested heavily in infrastructure, expanding and refreshing Anfield and spending big on improving the first team training facilities. Next up on the infrastructure investment agenda is improving the club’s academy.
The Kirkby academy training centre has seen its share of improvements since opening in 1998, but according to The Athletic’s James Pearce a planned £20M facelift starting this year and continuing through next summer will be represent the
most significant investment in the facilities.
From new floodlights to a full sized domed pitch for poor weather training, the goal will be to bring the academy facilities in line with the best around Europe—with technical director Julian Ward said to have been particularly impressed by the youth facilities at AS Roma.
Over the past decade, Liverpool’s academy has gone from afterthought to a key part of the club’s sporting and financial set-up, with graduates contributing minutes at a higher rate than at other top English clubs as well as consistently earning significant fees in the transfer market.
This summer, sales of club trained talent including Jarell Quansah, Ben Doak, Caoimhin Kelleher, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Tyler Morton, and Nat Phillips accounted for more than £80M in income and helped to fund a busy summer including multiple record signings.
