Cristiano Ronaldo Reportedly Forced Manchester United To Upgrade Swimming Pool

The five-time Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo reportedly forced some changes at Manchester United's training ground after complaining about the state of its swimming pool.

According to the Mirror, Ronaldo is said to have been shocked by the state of Carrington upon returning to Old Trafford during the summer. The Portuguese international claimed the pools were old. He refused to use them and complained that "loose, chipped and missing tiles" within the pools were a safety hazard. The 37-year-old striker claimed that no upgrades had been made since he was transferred to Real Madrid in 2009.

It is believed that Ronaldo made sure his rented home in Cheshire had an indoor swimming pool so that he could perform water-based exercises and drills without having to use the old Carrington pool.

Meanwhile, Red Devils is understood to have considered Ronaldo's complaints and have ordered work to be completed on the pools in order to get them ready for pre-season training which will start in July. Man Utd have also reportedly spent £200,000 ($252,407) on a new boiler system, as their old one is said to be causing issues with hot and cold water during the winter months.

United's training ground was previously famous for being an amazingly beautiful complex when it was first unveiled; the Red Devils moved to Carrington from The Cliff in 2000. However, during the last few years, it fell behind other team's impressive facilities. A Man Utd source said, "Cristiano is an important voice at the training ground. In the past players might have said something but nothing happened. If Cristiano speaks up, people listen, take notice and things tend to change!"

In 2021, Man Utd applied for planning permission to build additional changing rooms, offices, gyms and catering areas at Carrington. That followed a request to planners to put new LED floodlights, an all-seater stand for 500 spectators including wheelchair access. Collette Roche, Chief Operating Officer previously said, "Longer term, we are looking at fuller redevelopment plans for Carrington to ensure it will be a state-of-the-art, fully integrated facility for our men’s, women’s and academy groups. Significant, game-changing investment will be made into our training facilities to take Carrington to the next level once again."