Ole delighted by St Andrews training camp
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been delighted with Manchester United’s training camp in Scotland, where the manager and his squad have enjoyed team bonding, good weather, beautiful views - and ping pong.
The Reds have spent the last four days at a training base in St. Andrews, ahead of our final friendly game, against Everton on Saturday at Old Trafford.
Ongoing COVID-19 restrictions mean this year’s pre-season has remained an overwhelmingly local affair, with United playing four fixtures, all in England, and enjoying two training camps, one in Surrey and another north of the border.
Solskjaer says the experience has been a good one, and that the decent weather has helped in no small part.
“It’s always nice weather in Scotland!” the boss joked, in the latest episode of United Daily.
“We’ve been very lucky to be fair. When you come up here, you can get any type of climate, but we’ve had a fantastic four days.
“It’s been great for bonding. It’s really important for the players to get together, it’s the first time we’ve been able to get everyone together, so it’s been a good few days.”
Training near the famous St. Andrews golf course at the area’s prestigious university, Solskjaer says the players have been pleased with the quality of the facilities.
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“You have to commend them for the quality of the pitch,” Solskjaer said, “it’s been great.”
Not only has the turf been good, but the sight of the ocean swell and the taste of sea air has made it feel like home for the Norwegian.
“The hotel has been superb with us,” he enthused, “and the scenery here… I love to see the ocean, it’s like being back home. Some fresh air is important.”
As for team bonding, Dan James told us earlier in the week that cards and dice games have been regular parts of evening entertainment for the squad. Solskjaer says the same.
“There have been competitions with pool and table tennis and these trips get them together and you can spend a little bit of time talking about the Euros and what they did during their holidays,” he explained.
“It’s important before we go into a long season because we depend on each other. They depend on each other on the pitch and they need to know they can rely on each other.”