FC Hatta’s under-17 side will be aiming to “give it their best” when they take part in the Evima Cup Albena 2014 in Bulgaria this week.
The 25-member squad left for Bulgaria in two groups on Sunday and Monday ahead of the tournament which gets under way on Saturday.
FC Hatta will play 11-a-side matches in 30-minute halves against Kaspiy Aktau, Sdusshor No7 Chymkent (both Kazakhstan), Cherno Varna, Spartak Varna (both Bulgaria) and Dinamo Tirana at the state-of-the-art facilities at Albena.
The squad consists of 18 Emiratis, two from Oman and Syria, and one player each from France, Egypt and Sudan.
Lenar Sayfullin, director of sales at MICE Sports, part of MICE International, which has sent the team to Bulgaria, believes it will be a learning curve for the Dubai team.
Sayfullin said: “I hope they will show their best qualities during the games because the clubs competing are top teams in their countries.
“So in that respect we expect it to be a tough set of matches and hopefully they can give their best and show what they are capable of.”
When asked why FC Hatta are taking part in the competition, Sayfullin said: “Many teams have shown interest in competing against other sides from different countries and this tournament has a rich history. Also, given the number teams in the tournament, it will be very testing for FC Hatta.”
Sayfullin feels participation in the tournament and learning from mistakes is key for the young team.
He added: “These players have started playing at a very young age and have developed throughout the years and reached a certain level.
“I don’t think results are that important. Football is a sport and every team will obviously want to go out and win.
“The participation of the players in the tournament is key but at the end of the day, I’m sure the team will give it their all.”