Rahma meets Dubai’s young soccer prospects

DUBAI: Nasser Aman Al Rahma, Assistant Secretary General of Dubai Sports Council, on Tuesday met the eight Emirati football players who will be flying to Malaga, Spain, next month as part of du LaLiga High Performance Centre’s Summer Programme, and he urged the youngsters to make the most of this opportunity.

Rahma also met with representatives of the Dubai clubs, in the presence of Ahmed Salem Al Muhri, Acting Director of Sports Development at Dubai Sports Council, at the council’s headquarters.

Tareq Al Janahi, Vice Chairman of Al Nasr Football Company, Mohammed Ali Amer, CEO of Al Wasl Football Company, Khaled Al Zahid, CEO of Shabab Al Ahli Football Company, and Haie Hassan Al Badawi, Chairman of the Sports Section at Hatta Club, were present at the meeting, where they discussed ways to prevent cybercrime and safe use of social media channels, and the role of liaison officers in improving the club’s communication with their fans and strengthening their relationship.

Briefing the young Emirati players on the details of the Summer Programme in Spain, Rahma stressed on the huge benefits of the programme, not just for the travelling players but UAE football in general.

“From the outset, one of Dubai Sports Council’s top objectives have been to groom and support bright young talents across all sports, and football in particular,” Rahma said.

“Through the years, we have launched a number of initiatives to meet these objectives and this partnership with Du and the du LaLiga High Performance Centre is a continuation of our efforts.

“It is a great opportunity for the players to experience the professional academy setup at some of Spain’s top clubs on this trip, and I am confident they will make the most of this opportunity.”

Rabee Hassan Al Balooshi and Yousef Al Rahma of Al Wasl, Shabab Al Ahli Dubai’s Khalifa Saeed and Musa Abdulla Musa, Saif Al Badawi and Fares Al Badawi of Hatta, and Al Nasr’s Ahmad Al Balooshi and Ali Al Jassemi will be flying on Aug.15 along with the other players selected for the Summer Programme for the 15-day camp in Spain, where they will play three competitive matches against Spanish LaLiga’s top youth clubs and one match against a Spanish academy side.

The Summer Programme is part of a new joint initiative between Dubai Sports Council, Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (EITC) and the du LaLiga High Performance Centre to power the professional development of high-potential talent in the UAE, and at Dubai football clubs in particular.

The eight Emirati players were handpicked by Du LaLiga HPC’s talent scouts as part of the three-team travelling party, comprising of 17 players each from the Under-17, Under-16 and Under-15 categories. All the 51 players have already gone through an intensive internal camp in June.

The initiative is part of Dubai Sports Council’s “Young Talent Development Programme” and an extension of the “Future Goalkeepers” and “Future Strikers” programmes.

“These are some of the brightest young talents at Dubai football clubs and they are also the future of UAE football, and giving them international exposure and this opportunity to train in a professional setup and compete against the top talents of their age group at top Spanish clubs will be the stepping stone to a long and distinguished career for club and country,” Rahma added.