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United City FC (UCFC) is set to fly to Dubai to kick off its preparations for the AFC Champions League in Uzbekistan next month.
UCFC co-owner Eric Gottschalk yesterday said they are bracing for a three-week camp in the bustling Middle East city with almost a month before their maiden appearance in the prestigious inter-club tourney set from 25 June to 11 July.
He said going to Dubai is such a logical move since they are having difficulty launching their training camp in Manila due to tight quarantine restrictions.
“Dubai was an easy option to choose since there is no quarantine at the moment and all the facilities have opened up,” said Gottschalk, whose team is expected to leave for Dubai on 30 May.
“We will train there for three weeks and play some practice matches before going straight to Uzbekistan.”
The four-time Philippines Football League (PFL) champion was placed in Group I together with Japan League champion Kawasaki Frontale, Chinese Super League powerhouse Beijing Guoan FC, and the winner in the playoff match between Daegu FC of Korea and Chiangrai United of Thailand.
With this, UCFC beefed up its roster by signing some reinforcements like American defender Johnny Campbell, Korean booter Da-Hwon Jung and Azkals youngster Justin Baas early this year.
Spanish striker and AFC Cup all-time scorer Bienvenido Marañon is expected to lead the squad in the training camp as he was not able to join the Azkals in Qatar due to the delay of his naturalization papers.
Meanwhile, UCFC skipper Stephan Schrock and striker Mark Hartmann, are set to join the team once they finish their national team duties in the FIFA World Cup and AFC Cup Qualifiers in Suzhou, China this June.
“I think everybody is in extremely high spirits and excited that this (training) is finally getting started,” Gottschalk said.
“At the same time, I’m not worried because these are professional players so they will be physically and mentally prepared for our training camp.”
https://tribune.net.ph/index.php/2021/05/23/ucfc-books-dubai-camp/
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