(MENAFN- Gulf Times) Aspire Academy yesterday launched its two-day Aspire Football Festival for Preparatory Schools as part of its ongoing efforts to identify promising young football talent in Qatar.
Featuring 24 government schools, the competition is being followed closely by the members of the coaching staff at both the Qatar national team and local football clubs, who are taking a keen interest in future generations of the country's footballers.
In the stands at the Aspire Academy's outdoor pitches yesterday morning were Qatar coach Jorge Fossati, Qatar Olympic team coach Felix Sanchez, Al Sadd coach Jesualdo Ferreira and Al Sailiya coach Sami Trabelsi.
Several leading local football figures also looked on, including the legendary Mansour Muftah, Estad Al-Doha's editor-in-chief Majid al-Khelaifi, and Al Sadd's Head of Football, Mohamed Ghanem al-Ali.
Fossati commended Aspire Academy's handling of the tournament and its approach towards football development, saying, 'These participants represent the future of Qatar and Aspire Academy has always impressed in its diligence in finding and developing talent across all sports, not just football. My advice to these young players is if you really like football, follow the coaches' instructions and try to plan your life in accordance with your professional goals, because there are many things that you will not be able to achieve unless you begin planning for them now.
Sanchez said, 'Qatar is building an impressive football pyramid and this generation could be playing in Qatar 2022, if they train hard and listen to their coaches.
Ferreira added: 'This is an excellent tournament because there is no better place to start developing football or sporting talent than at school.
Trabelsi said, 'This festival is a wonderful initiative from my perspective because it gives unseen players an unrivalled opportunity to unlock a new and exciting future for themselves, in that they could be invited to join Aspire Academy or play for local clubs.
Estad Al-Doha's editor-in-chief al-Khelaifi, who took part in honouring the winners of the group stage, said, 'This is a huge step for Aspire Academy to begin tapping government schools as a key source of talent. Even if this festival succeeds in discovering only three talented youths from each school, that is still a large base of talents. I hope to see similar festivals happening throughout the year.
The tournament, which is played on pitches sized 68mx45m with 9 players per team and a match duration of 20 minutes, started with six groups of four teams each. Ibn Kahldun, the Islamic Institute, Imam Shafi, Abu Ubaidah, Yarmuk, and Hamza Ibn Abdulmutalib schools yesterday qualified for the second stage, which takes place today at the Aspire Dome's indoor pitch.
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