Manchester United’s players are sleeping in special oxygen pods in between training sessions in an effort to speed up recovery times and reduce the threat of recurrent injuries.
The move is one of the latest examples of Louis van Gaal’s meticulous and obsessive overhaul of United’s Carrington training base and the club’s fitness, training and rehabilitation programmes.
With double training a regular feature since Van Gaal’s arrival at Old Trafford in July, players can now sleep in oxygenated chambers at lunchtime after a morning session and before the afternoon run-out to help to enhance performance levels and improve their quality of rest.
Such facilities are often used by sportspeople in the treatment of injuries, but Van Gaal has been encouraging their more widespread use, the