Dundee FC have unveiled plans for a new youth academy.
Director of football John Nelms revealed that the state-of-the-art facility will be built on a site near Dens Park at Manhattan Works.
The planning application shows there will be two five-a-side 3G pitches and a large therapy and sports science department.
The new academy staff will include a youth physiotherapist, health and welfare officer, strength and conditioning coach and nutritionist.
Nelms announced the plans at Dens to a gathering of youth players currently attached to the Dark Blues.
They are being run in conjunction with the Showcase the Street social enterprise.
He said: “Having commitment from a young age to become a professional is a fantastic thing. The boys deserve the best of everything.
“We would have liked to have had this in place by now, but we are ahead of schedule with the youth academy plans.
“We may sacrifice defeat to help develop the players. This may be difficult at first but we’re here to develop professional footballers.
“Having this indoor facility will help us immensely. We shouldn’t have a break in training because of the weather.
“All youth and academy players will go from two sessions per week to three. There will be a focus on technical work.”
Director Steve Martin will take up a role as head of academy fundraising.
Martin said: “We have to finance this our own way. We have now brought Dee Promotions in house to try and push funding for our youth academy.
“We want to raise money to help reach the dreams and aspirations of the kids.”