Road to Barcelona starts for 144 kids

The “Road to Barcelona” yesterday began for 144 kids, Filipino boys and girls 10 to 12 years old, who may earn a oncein-a-lifetime chance to train under the highly-touted FC Barcelona football program in Spain.

Two youth coaches from FC Barcelona arrived in the country Friday evening, and stepped onto the McKinley Hill Stadium the morning after to teach and watch Pinoy kids, all aspiring football players, in action.

Arnau Blanco Moreno, who’s been with FC Barcelona since 2014, was joined by Marti Vila Llobera in conducting theoretical and practical sessions with the young players, divided into morning and afternoon batches of 72 each, at the start of the twoday camp. Robbie de Vera, who once played football at a high level, said two of the kids will catch the eyes of the FC Barcelona mentors for a chance to train at Camp Nou, the massive home of Lionel Messi and Barca.

“We are here to share with the Filipino kids the experience and the knowledge that we use in Barcelona,” said Arnau, an active coach in FCB Escola in Barcelona, and has been around Europe, South America, Australia and Asia promoting the sport.

The two lucky players to be chosen from a field that’s culled from football clubs from as far as Cebu City, including the less-priviledged communities, will undergo an eight-day, all-expenses-paid training in Barcelona. They will be joined by eight other Filipino youngsters

who will find their own way to Spain.

“This is basically a free worldclass training from a world-class organization in a world-class venue. For some of these kids today it’s their first time to see a real turf,” said De Vera.