Man.City school teams impress at Gothia Cup
- 23 Jul 2019
Manchester City football school teams from the UAE have returned from the world’s most prestigious junior football tournament with a series of impressive results.
The under 11s, under 12s and under 13s teams from the UAE travelled to the Gothia Cup in Sweden to compete with hundreds of other teams from across the planet. The tournament is known as The World Youth Cup and has been held every year since 1975.
The players from the UAE all train at City Football Schools in Abu Dhabi and Dubai travelled with the coaching team who look after them on a weekly basis.
The under 11s played eight games — winning six and losing twice — with several players shining against even the toughest opponents of the tournament.
The under 12s team, which won the local Mubadala league last year and the Manchester City Abu Dhabi Cup, won all their group games before being knocked out by the team from Brazil who eventually went on to win the trophy.
The under 13s also progressed to the knockout stages before falling to a powerful team from South Africa in the form of Johannesburg FC.
In each age group the teams competed against 250 other sides and with this the debut year for the players from UAE, the entire trip was both fun and hugely encouraging.
City Football Schools Head Coach, Simon Hewitt, said: “This is the first time Manchester City has sent teams from the UAE in these age groups to play in a famous and challenging tournament that everyone involved in youth football looks to as setting the standard.
“It was a fantastic trip – from the results on the pitch to the way the players handled an international adventure and rose to the occasion against some very strong opposition.
“We are now looking to a great season ahead in the UAE and heading back to the Gothia Cup again next year.”
Built on the philosophy and training programme of the City Academy, City Football Schools Abu Dhabi and Dubai offers boys and girls, from 3 to 18 years old, an opportunity to improve their football skills, stay healthy, make friends and have lots of fun in a positive and friendly learning environment, under the guidance and supervision of fully qualified City Football coaches.