Etisalat brings Barca coaching greats to UAE

The youth academy of the European giants are famous for producing players of supreme technical ability and, now, three of their academy coaches will conduct a three-day football clinic at the Etisalat Academy in Dubai.

Etisalat, one of the sponsors of the 2009 Champions League winners, is convinced that their association with Barcelona will help develop the beautiful game in the country. The first step towards the dream destination will be the three-day clinic, which will get under way on Thursday.

While talking to Khaleej Times, Khaled Matar, Senior Manager, Public Relations, Etisalat, informed: “As you know we are one of the sponsors of FC Barcelona. That gave us a great opportunity to get Barcelona’s youth coaches. We shared our idea with the UAE Football Association. They were really glad. So they decided that players from the under-12 and under-14 national teams would attend the clinic.”

This will not be the only clinic though. “We are entitled to have two camps, actually. That’s in the contract. And the concept of this camp is that it will not be over on Saturday.

“I mean after Saturday, the players who will be able to impress the coaches the most during the camp, will be selected and taken to Barcelona. They will be sent to Camp Nou for a week. There they will train in their academy,” Matar added.

“Since we are sponsoring a top international club team, we want to take this chance to help the local community. And the best way to do it is by developing young players. We want to set an example.

Eight local coaches from UAE’s youth clubs will also attend the clinic.

In a statement, Haitham AL Kharusi, Vice President of Marketing Communications at Etisalat, said: Etisalat is committed to create maximum opportunities for the local football players. We want to help them achieve their true potential. As we complete our year of partnership with Barcelona, we are accelerating our support to develop UAE’s football talent through innovative promotions and initiatives with the club.

“We want all participants to express their full technical, tactical and physical skill. The young players will learn about perseverance, determination and discipline, which are all necessary. We believe that such programmes for youth are important in building a better tomorrow for this nation.”

The youth academy of Barcelona has produced players like Lionel Messi, Xavi, Iniesta, Bojan and Fabregas. Without a doubt, a stint in such a prestigious academy will put UAE’s emerging players on the right track.

rituraj@khaleejtimes.com