Barcelona legend Lionel Messi was blown away by Man City's new £200m training campus

Posted Tuesday, December 09, 2014 by Dailystar.co.uk

LIONEL MESSI was blown away when he was given a personal tour of Manchester City's new £200m training campus.

The state-of-the-art complex close to the Etihad Stadium is the latest project of the club's ambitious billionaire owner Sheikh Mansour.

It will offer Manuel Pellegrini's superstars the most hi-tech training facilities and luxurious surroundings in world football.

It includes 16 outdoor training pitches with different grass surfaces, three gymnasiums, hydro therapy area, hot and cold plunge pools and changing rooms that include a round one at the request of Pellegrini's squad.

Barcelona legend Lionel Messi was blown away by Man City's new £200m training campus
AMAZED: Lionel Messi was very impressed with City's new training ground

There is a players' lounge and refectory that includes an auditorium for the players to watch videos, as well as 32 en-suite bedrooms based on a 4-star hotel, including king-sized beds for the players to sleep in before home games as well as 12 visitor and parents' rooms.

There is also sleeping accommodation for academy players, who can even learn to cook in readiness for when they leave to live on their own.

The facilities also include a 60m sprint track, jet washes to clean football boots, a command centre and 24-hour security.

City defender Pablo Zabaleta gave close friend Messi a tour of the complex last month when he was in Manchester for Argentina's clash with Portugal and admits the Barcelona superstar was blown away by what he saw.

Zabaleta said: "When we came here for training with the national team, when we played Portugal in Manchester, they were very impressed.

"We gave Messi a tour just to try to impress him! They also have a good training ground in Barcelona, with great facilities. Messi has been there for a long time, but even he was impressed by this."