Juventus Soccer School to re-open on Friday

It’s the dream of every aspiring young player that one day he will don the shirt of a top team in European football.

This week, Maltese youngsters will have the opportunity to showcase their skills to coaches from renowned Serie A club Juventus as the Torino giants will re-open their soccer school in Malta.

Details of the initiative were given yesterday by Joseph Fenech, vice-president of the Juventus Club Vero Amore, during a press conference at the premises of the Bianconeri supporters club in Fleur De Lys.

“We are pleased to announce that the Juventus Soccer School will re-open its doors at the end of this month after an absence of three years,” Fenech told reporters.

“An agreement has been reached between the Turin club and Events Services that will see the school operate here for seasons 2010-11 and 2011-12.”

Charles Borg has been appointed as the school’s head coach. He will be working in close contact with the technical staff at the Serie A club.

“The main aim of the school is to help young players polish their football skills and give them the opportunity to prove their worth to coaches from Juventus with a view of winning a trial abroad in future,” Borg said.

“So far, we have 40 players who will be attending the school but the doors are still open for others who are interested in joining this venture.”

The first training session of the Juventus Soccer School will be held on Friday at the Pembroke Ground, starting at 5 p.m. The first year of the school will come to a close on June 24 with a presentations’ night.

Borg said that apart from the regular sessions, all participants will be monitored by qualified coaches from the Juventus academy and those leaving a good impression are likely to be offered a trial by the Serie A club.

It was also revealed yesterday that in April, the Maltese soccer school will be participating in the Juventus Academy Cup, a competition open for all the school’s branches.

The Juventus Club Vero Amore also announced yesterday that members will have the opportunity to benefit from the initiative Accendi una Stella.

The scheme will see Juve fans having their name inscribed at the new football stadium to host Juventus matches which will be inaugurated in 2011-12. Some officials from the Serie A club will be here later this week to give more details on this initiative.

Buffon visit

Last weekend, Italy and Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon was spotted in Malta during a short holiday.

Fenech said they were not informed by the Turin mother club of Buffon’s brief stay in Malta.

“I can confirm that Gianluigi Buffon was in Malta last weekend,” Fenech said.

“He left on Sunday morning. This was a private visit by Buffon and we were not made aware of his impending arrival here so we could not plan any activities.”