Mobily Stars squad at the main hall of Emirates Stadium in London. LONDON –About 30 Saudi students representing Mobily School League Stars arrived London last week to participate in the Arsenal International Friendly Tournament. Mobily Star was placed in Group B alongside seven international teams from different countries that are participating in the International tournament which is played under the rules of the FA and FIFA. Before flying to London, Mobily Stars team concluded a local camp in Riyadh to feed the students with extra courses and skills before announcing the final list of the delegation, which was headed by well-experienced Saudi coaches. As part of their preparations for the tournament, the Saudi young stars took intensive training sessions in Arsenal Academy backed by Etihad Etisalat (Mobily), the organizer and the official sponsor of the School League in partnership with Ministry of Education in the Kingdom. After several training sessions in London, Mobily Stars visited Emirates Stadium where the students enjoyed a new experience by landing on the pitch of the international stadium of Arsene Wenge's team. The tour also included a short visit to the stadium facilities and Arsenal Store before the delegation was briefed on the stadium's history. Mobily decided to have Arsenal as its summer location camp for its team after different successful experiences with Spanish and Italian academies during the past three years. Barcelona in Spain hosted the first camp in 2007, Itlay's AC Milan was in 2008 before Arsenal has been selected for the second time in a row. Mobily aims to build strong generation of Saudi footballers to feed the local clubs and the national team with talented players. Arsenal Academy has consistently produced footballers ready for first-team action for both Arsenal and other professional football clubs. The Under-18s finished in the top half of the table last season. The most prominent example of a player progressing through the current system is Ashley Cole, who established himself as first choice left-back for both club and country before his move to Chelsea. A number of former Academy youngsters have made their mark in the Carling Cup, taking Arsenal to three successive semifinals and a final appearance in 2007.
