Leicester City's £100m training ground now a curse as fans turn on Russell Martin
Inside Leicester City, fans are now turning on Russell Martin as the club’s £100 million Seagrave training ground – a 180‑acre complex in rural Leicestershire with 21 pristine pitches, hotel‑style rooms and Michelin‑starred canteens – fails to deliver the progress promised on Christmas Eve 2020.
A world‑class facility that raised expectations
The Seagrave TRAINING GROUND boasts an enormous indoor pitch, a hydrotherapy pool, spectacular gym facilities and even a nine‑hole golf course. Clubs such as Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Inter Milan and AC Milan would have looked on with envy at the sheer scale of the project.
‘It elevates the club’s offering to its players and staff to an entirely new level and is a key component in making our progress of recent years sustainable,’ said chairman Aiyawatt “Top” Srivaddhanaprabha.
When Leicester moved into the new complex, the CLUB were second in the Premier League. Six years on, the Foxes sit 18th in League One and the ownership has placed the CLUB up for sale.
Sale doubts and on‑field turmoil
Fans have turned sharply against Russell Martin after a 4‑0 home defeat to Oxford, with the manager interrupting a BBC local radio reporter and blaming the players for the result.
Jon Rudkin’s dithering has added to the unrest, as supporters question the direction of the CLUB and demand clarity from the board.
In mid‑August, owners authorised US investment bank Citigroup to produce an eight‑page sales booklet valuing the assets at about £222 million. Prospective bidders, however, struggle to obtain information on the CLUB’s debt levels and the dramatic fall in squad value.
Defender Caleb Okoli carries a book value of nearly £8 million, while 27‑year‑old centre‑back Harry Souttar is listed at about £6 million – figures that raise questions about what price any buyer will pay.
Players have described Seagrave as “like a holiday camp”, noting fingerprint ID at doors and the removal of personal plates and cutlery, a culture that critics say has eroded responsibility on the pitch.
The Foxes face Stockport at Edgeley Park on Saturday, needing a swift turnaround if they are to halt the slide, but the looming sale and fan discontent present significant obstacles.