Abu Dhabi: The UAE capital is fast becoming a hotbed of international football. Less than two weeks after Spanish giants Barcelona thrilled fans in Abu Dhabi en route to winning the Fifa Club World Cup, the emirate continues to be held under the spell of top flight football with the arrival of Italian heavyweights Inter Milan.
Jose Mourinho's Italian champions jetted into the UAE on Tuesday and Wednesday held back-to-back training sessions at state of the art Zayed Sports City Stadium.
The team is expected to train again today and on New Year's Day before flying to Riyadh, where they are scheduled to play a friendly match against Al Hilal on Saturday, January 2, to mark the farewell of Saudi Aabian star Nawaf Al Temyat.
The squad will return to Milan directly after the friendly in Riyadh, and will train again on January 3 ahead of the midweek Serie A Week 18 match away to Chievo.
Inter stars Julio Cesar, Lucio, Maicon, Mancini, Diego Milito, Thiago Motta, Walter Samuel and Javier Zanetti arrived in Abu Dhabi directly from South America while Denis Esteban Cambiasso, Wesley Sneijder and Dejan Stankovic, Alibec, Alan Stevanovic and Giulio Donati flew in from Italy.
Founded in 1908, Inter are one of the most successful clubs in Italian football history, having collected 15 Scudetti, five Coppa Italia, three Uefa cups and two European cups during their long and illustrious history. They are currently top of the Serie A with 39 points from 17 matches, with AC Milan on 31 and Juventus on 30.
Press conference
Meanwhile, Mourinho is expected to address a press conference today where the general secretary of Abu Dhabi Sports Council (ADSC), Mohammad Al Mahmood will also be present.
Only last month, ADSC signed a three-year agreement with English Premier League outfit Manchester City Football Club to help develop football in the emirate by collaborating with strategic partners with international expertise.
The agreement was signed in Abu Dhabi early November when the team was in town to play a "friendly" against the UAE National team at Zayed Sports City.
