From tailored meals to a sense of home, Man City women open new training facility

MANCHESTER, England, May 13 : Lunch at Manchester City Women's new first-team facility no longer revolves around pasta on repeat or squeezing in alongside teenagers fresh back from school.

In a light-filled restaurant overlooking the pitches, players choose from menus tailored to their bodies, cultures and match-day rhythms, prepared by chefs hired specifically for the women's team.

City's four Japanese players eat with chopsticks engraved with their names. Jamaica striker Khadija "Bunny" Shaw prefers dishes that "burn the roof of your mouth".

"It makes them feel like they're part of something," said Emma Deakin, director of performance services for Man City's women's programme. 

The details may sound small, but they are the clearest expression of what City believe their new 10-million-pound ($13.52 million), women-only facility is meant to be: a purpose-built home that treats elite women footballers not as guests, but as the centre of the operation.

Nutrition has become one of the clearest examples of how bespoke that approach can be. 

Three chefs work exclusively with the squad, collaborating closely with the club's nutritionist and players, even planning meals for bus journeys home from away games.

"The main difference is obviously the scheduling," Deakin told reporters after a tour of the new facility. 

The women used to be under the same roof as the club's academy players, where hundreds of boys aged 14 to 19 needed to be fed daily. 

"You've got a load of 15-year-old lads who want pasta every day, compared to Bunny, who will only eat something if it burns the roof of your mouth," Deakin said.

"We can be really bespoke around: what does fuelling look like for you? And if you're a Japanese player, if you are a Jamaican player,