Training Talk: Michael Carrick

Michael Carrick is the latest player to give readers an insight into life at the Aon Training Complex - and to pick his ideal five-a-side team...

Which part of training do you enjoy the most?
I enjoy it all to be honest. There’s a lot of variety in training nowadays with us doing different things in the gym - pilates, yoga, that kind of thing. Then there’s the work we do outside, the meetings and the analysis, it’s the whole package. We’re very lucky to have all that. It’s a lot different now to when I started playing.

Who’s the most competitive player in training?
Everyone’s competitive. There isn’t really anyone at the minute that stands out but that’s not to say it isn't competitive. Every day you want to win and come out on top in training. That's why nobody really stands out, everyone’s trying to do as well as everyone else.

How seriously do you treat the training matches and challenges?
It's serious - you don’t want to lose. I think that’s built in us, whatever we play, whether it’s table tennis on tour or a game of pool, snooker, anything. It's always competitive. When you get out on the training pitch, you don't want to go back inside the changing room and be on the end of some stick after the session.

How do the facilities at the Aon Training Complex compare to those at your previous clubs?
I was at West Ham quite a long time ago now and that was at the time when clubs were beginning to think about changing their training ground. Tottenham’s training ground was similar to West Ham’s but they’ve since moved on to something similar to what we have here at Carrington. We’re very lucky that we have all the facilities here that we could hope for. That’s the way it’s going really, you look around at Manchester City and Arsenal, who built theirs at a similar time to when this was built, that’s just the way it’s going. There’s far more emphasis on preparing and recovering than maybe there was a few years ago.

Who is your unsung hero at the training ground - the staff member who regularly makes your day?
Carol and Rita in the kitchen always give me some stick! I wouldn’t say they make my day necessarily but they’re always there to give me some stick.

How important is the gym work for the players?
It's more important than ever. A few years ago the game was a bit different, now it’s so fast. Strength, power and agility come into play whereas before it was perhaps just based purely on footballing ability. Now there is so much more you need to be able to cope with so the gym work is important.

As always we end this feature by asking you to pick four colleagues to join you in an ideal five-a-side team. So, who makes the cut?
I'd go for all-out attack so Falcao, Angel, Robin and Wazza.

Credit: manutd.com