Work Begins For Leicester In Abu Dhabi
There are seven Foxes already out in Qatar for the biggest football tournament on the planet, and they are located just over an hour's flight from where their club team-mates will conducting their work until Sunday.
The flight path City’s travelling squad – a mixture of first team and Academy youngsters – saw them travel directly over Doha, with many of the World Cup grounds lit up and in sight. Just half an hour later, the Foxes had arrived at their destination.
Their hotel is set in Al Rawdah on the Grand Canal, off which the sunlight glitters, and a non-stop nearby highway flows constantly throughout the day. To the west is the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, the largest in the United Arab Emirates – a structure, that at its tallest point sits over 350 ft, and dominates the skyline, whether it be day or night.
The training pitches are a short walk from basecamp, and on Monday afternoon, as the heat began to die down, although still remaining at 30 degrees, Leicester shook their travels with a session at 4pm local time. A series of stretches bookended some ball work, as they began to acclimatise to the heat and time zone.
Many of City’s stars have already enjoyed warmer climates since their 2-0 Premier League win away to West Ham United, which added the gloss to a positive run of form – a sixth victory in nine games in all competitions. They are next in action on Tuesday 20 December, taking on MK Dons in the Carabao Cup Fourth Round.
Before that fixture takes place, a week of work will now see the Foxes participate in a series of warm weather sessions, conditioning their bodies for a return to competitive action just before Christmas.
Throughout the week, visit LCFC.com for the very latest from United Arab Emirates’ capital city.