Starlets settle on Abu Dhabi for training camp

The national under 17 football team have settled on the capital city of the United Arab Emirates as the venue for a training camp ahead of their FIFA U-17 World Cup campaign which gets underway on October 6 in India.

The Black Starlets were initially bent on travelling to Denmark for preparations ahead of the tourney but strict visa requirements from the Danish Embassy in Accra put paid to that trip and the 24-man squad  will now travel to Abu Dhabi on Wednesday for the training tour.

However, Starlets head coach, Paa Kwesi Fabin, maintains that he was never in favour of the journey to Denmark because the weather conditions in the Scandinavian country was different from the prevailing weather in India.

"We will not go to Denmark and I like it because the weather there is very cold," Fabin told the Graphic Sports after the team held closed-door talks with the Minister of Youth and Sports, Isaac Kwame Asiamah and his deputy, Pius Edem Hadzide.

Briefing the media on the travel arrangements for the Starlets, Mr Hadzide said Abu Dhabi was an ideal destination for the team because most of the U-17 teams participating in the World Cup would be camping in the same area and thus provided the team with opportunities to test their strength.

"There are six other national teams who are hopefully going to come to Abu Dhabi; New Zealand, India, Mali, Guinea, Iran and the United States of America. It is our expectation that we will take advantage of their presence to play a couple of friendlies with these teams,” Mr Hadzide said.

The deputy minister added that after the training camp in Abu Dhabi the team would head straight to India for the 2017 FIFA World Cup which runs from October 6-28.

The Starlets have been drawn alongside hosts India, United States and Colombia in Group A at the World Cup.