Courtesy: Khaleej Times


Adnan Hussain impressed by NAS futsal stars

6 July 2014

Adnan has been courtside at the Nad Al Sheba Sports Complex on most nights as the 16 futsal teams, divided into four groups, fought for a place in the last-eight.

Dazzled by the skills of the futsal players at the NAS 2014 Ramadan Sports Festival, Al Ahli star Adnan Hussain will consider switching to the indoor version of the “Beautiful Game” once his days as a professional football player come to an end.

Adnan has been courtside at the Nad Al Sheba Sports Complex on most nights as the 16 futsal teams, divided into four groups, fought for a place in the last-eight.

With some of the world’s leading futsal players, including Brazilian legend Falcao, part of these teams, the fans, including Adnan, have been thoroughly entertained.

“I cannot rule out the possibility of playing this game after retirement,” Adnan said. “It is one of the most beautiful games, reflecting the skills of the players and it requires high speed.”

Plenty of those skills and speed have been on display over the past week and the competition is about to shift gears as the futsal championship moves into the knockout stages. The teams are playing their final round of group matches, with only three more qualifiers to be decided.

Al Joker and Al Esaar have already clinched the two qualifying berths from Group A, and so have Fawad Zabeel and Al Markaz from Group D. Meanwhile, Fawad Jumeirah are assured of a place in the last-eight from Group B, while X-Cat and Al Amid are fighting for the second qualifying spot.

Group C, however, remains open. Al Towfan lead the table with 6 points, but they are not assured of a place in the knockout stages yet. Grinta and Samba are on three points and if those two teams win their final group matches on Sunday night, it could be a three-way tie on six points. Samba are playing Al Towfan, while Grinta will take on Deebo.

The NAS Sports Festival, which is being held under the patronage of Shaikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and President of the Dubai Sports Council, will see more than 3,000 participants compete across six different sports.

The three-week events boasts prize money in excess of Dh 6 million, thanks to the support of the sponsors, who include Emirates airlines, Al Tayer Motors, Dubai Duty Free, Meydan, Saeed and Mohammed Al Naboodah Group, Al Rostamani Group, Al Futtaim Motors, Emirates-NBD and Mashreq Bank.

There are plenty of goodies to be won by fans as well, including 11 business class return tickets for two to some of the best holiday destinations in the world, seven Mini Cooper cars, two Nissan Patrols and a swanky Range Rover Sport.






Posted by Luca Ranocchiari --> luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com