Arabian Gulf League outcast and UAE London 2012 Olympics centre-back Ali Al Ameri has surprisingly found a new home in the 10th tier of English football at Blyth AFC.
Al Ameri, 29, had not featured in any of Bani Yas’ games this term after their relegation to First Division League in 2016/17. He last featured in March 2017’s 6-2 thrashing by Al Wahda in the top flight.
The ex-Al Jazira and Al Nasr player officially completed a six-month deal without salary on March 31 after spending several weeks training at the side from the north east of England, who compete in EBAC Northern League Division Two.
“His pedigree is second-to-none, if you look at his career and where he’s been,” said Blyth joint-manager Ian Skinner.
“It was a bit of a chance signing, he’s a friend of somebody I know. Ali has been good in training and we went through the official channels after he had his contract cancelled with his team.”
Wahda and UAE centre-back Hamdan Al Kamali made eight appearances for Lyon’s reserves when on loan for the second half of 2011/12. Brother Hamid Al Kamali became the first Emirati to compete in the UEFA Champions League’s preliminary stages during a temporary stint at Malta’s Valletta in 2014/15.
UAE centre midfielder Amer Abdulrahman had a trial at Blackburn in 2013 and Al Ain superstar Omar Abdulrahman went through the same process at Manchester City after the 2012 Games.