Tottenham experience for Maltese youngster

It's not every day that a young Maltese player gets the chance to spend a few days at the academy of an English Premier League club but 17-year-old Michael Camilleri had that privilege recently.

Camilleri, who plays for the youth team of Birkirkara FC and is also part of Malta's U-17 squad, visited the Tottenham Hotspur Academy on the invitation of Chris Ramsey.

Ramsey, an old acquaintance of Maltese football after a spell he had with Naxxar Lions during his playing career, is the head of players' development at the Tottenham Hotspur Academy.

Regarded as a promising talent, Camilleri entertained high hopes of taking part in some training sessions of Tottenham's youth squad but an injury shattered his chances.

Upon arriving in North London, Camilleri underwent a thorough medical assessment which revealed that he was still suffering from a groin problem.

The diagnosis meant that Camilleri, who received expert advice about his injury from Tottenham's medical staff, couldn't train but that didn't signal the end of his Spurs experience as he was shown around the academy and also received tickets from Ramsey to watch the derby between Tottenham and Arsenal.

Ray 'Zazu' Farrugia, the architect of Camilleri's visit to Tottenham is in regular contact with Ramsey.

Farrugia, a former Malta U-21 coach who now runs his own football school, has invited Ramsey to visit the islands during the close season.

In the meantime, Farrugia and his fellow Zazu Football School (ZFS) coaches, are preparing for the annual penalty shoot-out at the San Ġwann FC ground on Friday.

The young members of the ZFS and their parents will take centre-stage in what promises to be a fun-filled activity as they will be vying for an array of prizes, including Barnsley and Ferencvaros shirts signed by Daniel Bogdanovic and Justin Haber respectively.

The ZFS are also planning to organise a summer trip to Manchester.

The proposed itinerary includes training sessions with coaches from the Manchester United Foundation at The Cliff.

More information on the ZFS may be obtained by phoning 9949-1594.