INEOS introduce revolutionary plan for Man Utd players to be at their peak for pre-season tour

Those behind the scenes at Manchester United have introduced a detailed plan for their players ahead of this summer's pre-season tour.

On Wednesday afternoon at around 3:30pm, a 29-man squad featuring new £52 million signing Leny Yoro made the 5,000-mile trip to Los Angeles ahead of their opening fixture.

United will come up against Mikel Arteta's Arsenal at the SoFi Stadium on Saturday before facing Real Betis in San Diego and Liverpool at the Williams-Brice Stadium, South Carolina.

In a bid to improve performances on the pitch, the club are trying methods used by Sir Dave Brailsford to gain an edge during the 10-day tour.

Brailsford, who is on a three-man committee that run the football operations at Old Trafford, believes in a concept that he refers to as the aggregation of marginal gains.

For example, during his time as head of British cycling, he said: "We were precise about food preparation. We brought our own mattresses and pillows so our athletes could sleep in the same posture every night.

"We searched for small improvements everywhere and found countless opportunities. Taken together, we felt they gave us a competitive advantage."

Now, United are using Brailsford's methods to ensure that players maximise their performance on tour.

Each player has been given a plan with designated sleep and meal windows, according to The Sun, who also suggest meals have been designed by the club's performance chef and nutrition team.

In addition, players have been given a hydration plan to avoid any risk of dehydration, as well as individually tailored compression garments to increase blood circulation.

Training has also been scheduled to shift their body clocks, with considerations made around exposure to light at the right time of day.

Image credit: Getty

Brailsford is credited with helping to transform the British cycling team thanks to the concept of marginal gains.

"If you broke down everything you could think of that goes into riding a bike, and then improved it by 1%, you will get a significant increase when you put them all together," Brailsford told the BBC in 2012.

"There's fitness and conditioning, of course, but there are other things that might seem on the periphery, like sleeping in the right position, having the same pillow when you are away. They're tiny things but together it makes a big difference."