Man Utd have spent three days training in Ireland this week as they look to set up a strong finish to the Premier League season. This is the story of the camp.
06:00, 10 Apr 2026
They had a split-screen set up in the Manchester United team room at the opulent Carton House on Tuesday night. On one TV, Manchester United Under-21s were taking on their Real Madrid counterparts in the quarter-final of the Premier League International Cup.
Had Michael Carrick and his staff not been in County Kildare, they would have been at Old Trafford, casting an eye over some of the club’s talented youngsters as they underwent a technical test of the kind they don’t often face domestically.
Being across the Irish Sea wasn’t going to stop Carrick from continuing his support of the club’s academy, and staff made sure that MUTV was on after dinner on Tuesday, allowing those who wanted to watch United’s youngsters lose a good game 4-2 in extra-time.
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But that wasn’t the only entertainment available on Tuesday night. On the other screen, and attracting plenty of interest from players desperate to return to this stage themselves, was the Champions League quarter-final between Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. A battle between European heavyweights and an open, end-to-end classic that looked nothing like some of the fare served up in the Premier League this season.
You can understand those players keen to watch that game. It is where United want to be themselves and this three-day jaunt to Ireland was about setting them up for one final push. A run of 23 points from a possible 30 under Carrick has moved United into third and they look on course to return to Europe’s blue-riband competition.
This was also a chance for the players to regroup after two weeks apart. The media were granted access to the first 15 minutes of the week’s first training session, and it was noticeable how buoyant the atmosphere was. The togetherness in the squad was noted by staff who saw them together at close quarters, and one felt it was a “nice reminder” of how tight-knit the players had become.
They trained on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday morning on the pristine pitches at Carton House, and were put through punishing gym sessions after being granted time off during the long break between fixtures. At times, the staff couldn’t drag the players off the training pitch, with the head tennis net proving a popular addition. Bruno Fernandes and Matheus Cunha were declared the champions at the end of the week.
It wasn’t all work for the players, either. They had time off on Tuesday afternoon, with some hitting the venue’s two championship golf courses and others opting for clay pigeon shooting. Some just had a relaxing couple of hours in the hotel’s spa.
These days, Carton House is mostly used by the Ireland rugby team, but it has played host to football clubs including Real Madrid, Chelsea, Newcastle and Burnley in the past. United did their best to keep their use of the venue quiet, but a few hundred fans were there when they arrived at around 7pm on Monday, and numbers grew as the week progressed.
By the time training finished on Wednesday, it is estimated that at least 3,000 fans lined the road between the training pitch and the hotel. Every player spent at least 20 minutes signing autographs and posing for selfies, and one United staffer said they had seen Fernandes sign at least 1,000 items across the three days. The captain also spent time with the club’s Sligo supporters branch, who presented him with their player of the year award.
The geography of Carton House makes it an appealing venue for clubs. United players could use the gym in their own area of the hotel before making the short walk down a tree-lined road and then a slight hill to training. With fans lining both sides of the one-track road, some players said it felt like a matchday arrival at Old Trafford.
United’s players weren’t the only head-turning attraction on site, however. Some members of the media were surprised to see Nicky Byrne from Westlife in attendance on Tuesday morning. As the wait for Amad and Bryan Mbeumo to arrive for their press conference ticked up towards 30 minutes, one remarked we were in danger of ‘filing without wingers’, offering a surprising knowledge of Westlife’s back catalogue.
Byrne was actually there for a meet-and-greet with the players, along with GAA star Carla Rowe and Irish influencer John Nellis. Also in attendance was nine-year-old Harry McCormack. The youngster is named after legendary United goalkeeper Harry Gregg, who survived the Munich air disaster. Young Harry is a lifelong patient at Crumlin Hospital after he was born with half a heart.
United’s presence in Ireland was partly to promote August’s pre-season friendly with Leeds, which will take place at the iconic Croke Park stadium, an 82,000-capacity GAA venue, which last hosted football 17 years ago.
It is a famous and historic site, and on arrival on Tuesday, striker Benjamin Sesko was whisked away for a photo opportunity. The size of the stadium shocked the Slovenian, who then shocked his hosts by showing some knowledge of GAA, having seen the sport on TV previously.
Back at Carton House, it was a different kind of football on the agenda. United staff were delighted with the focus and application in training after more than two weeks without a game, with the intensity levels cranked up following the return of Lisandro Martinez, who always brings an extra edge.
They checked out on Thursday afternoon and could return in the summer for a training camp around that Leeds fixture. But for now, Carrick and his staff will hope three days in Ireland and a round of golf or two have teed them up for a strong finish, and a return to playing in the Champions League, rather than watching it on TV.
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