10 Jan 2017
Doha, 10 January 2017. German’s Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich FC wound up their mid-season winter training at Aspire Academy on Tuesday 10 January and will play Aspire Zone Foundation (AZF) owned football club, KAS Eupen of Belgium in the evening of their last training day. The German record champions head coach Carlo Ancelotti described the week long training camp as a huge success and believes it has set a solid platform for the club to launch a formidable assault on the three major competitions in the second half of the season.
"Aspire Academy is so ideal for winter training camp as it offers the best facilities, that include fantastic pitches, hotel that’s walking distance from the playing fields and of course the warm weather too. All this makes Aspire the best place to hold a training camp for anyone who wants to have such a camp as we have had,” said the Italian coach who has held similar winter training camps at Aspire Academy before with his former clubs among them, AC Milan, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain.
Ancelotti was full of praise for Aspire for what he described as “impressive and correct way the Academy has set about to develop football in Qatar. The Bayern Munich head coach went on to say that the Aspire Academy philosophy of giving the students an education and opportunity to play sport in an environment created specifically for this outcome is excellent and the acquisition of KAS Eupen FC by AZF as part of the plan to develop the footballers is noble, “I hope this gives Aspire Academy enough time to get and prepare a team they are seeking to build for 2022 World Cup”
Coach Ancelotti said he was looking forward to the friendly match against KAS Eupen for a number of reasons, “There are some tactical things we have worked on during the week which l am looking to see in our play during this game. I know about KAS Eupen who play in the Belgian Pro League and have seen some of their matches, they are a team with quick and nimble players and will give us a worthy challenge.”
Bayern is expected to line up the club's pros and aspiring youngsters from the junior team such as Christian Früchtl,, Marco Friedl and Raphael Obermair alongside likes of Ribéry, Robben, Neuer, Mueller, Lewandowski, Vidal, Costa, Rafinha and Alaba) during the match scheduled to kick off at 1800hrs Qatari time.