Bani Yas gear up for new season

Bani Yas, the runners up of the UAE Pro-League (UFL), will hold a training camp in Barcelona, Spain, from September 24, to prepare for the new season which kicks off in October. The team's preparations have already started at home under their new Brazilian coach, Jorvan Vieira, who led Al Ittihad last season. They will organise a friendly tournament during Ramadan with the participation of Al Nasr from Saudi Arabia, Army Club from Syria and Safaqsi from Tunisia who will replace defending champions Al Hilal from Sudan, who apologised because of their obligations in the CAF Champions League. Bani Yas will take part in the AFC Champions League this year and are determined to leave a good impression following their outstanding performances in the UFL last season and the fact that five of their players were selected in the UAE's senior national team. Veteran defender Ali Massari expressed his thanks and appreciation to the club's management and said: "We will be facing a tough and difficult season on both local and continental fronts and we should be ready for the challenges to achieve good results in both competitions. "I am lucky to play in such a strong and excellent team with many first class players who compete for their places in the line up which leads to increasing our efforts and everyone is doing his best to secure his place. "I believe that we will be one of the best contenders for the UFL title this season and all my colleagues know the ambition of our management and of our fans," Massari added.