DA NANG – An 18-member U19 team from the Hoang Anh Gia Lai-Arsenal-JMG Football Academy will tour Europe this June in a pre-graduation programme.
Deputy managing director of Hoang Anh Gia Lai, Tran Van Minh, said his trainees, who will finish their seven-year course in 2014, are scheduled to train and play with teams from England, Belgium, France and the Netherlands.
“We have an intense training schedule for them in Europe. French coach Graechen Guillaume will push the players to their limits. They are the first members of the first course, so we have to make sure of their qualifications,” Minh said.
“They could be the future of Vietnamese football,” he added.
Last December Nguyen Tuan Anh, Tran Huu Dong Trieu, Nguyen Cong Phuong and Luong Xuan Truong were called up for a one-month training course with Arsenal’s U18 squad by Arsene Wenger.
The squad, based in Pleiku City, enjoyed a successful tour in Europe last year where they beat Arsenal’s U18 team 1-0 and Wissou FC of France 2-0.
According to Minh, a Greek club had shown interest in signing a player from the academy.
The academy was built in conjunction with Arsenal in 2007 with investment of US$4 million in the Central Highlands Province of Gia Lai. It was the first ever international standard football training centre to be built in Viet Nam. – VNS
Đăng ký: VietNam News
