Pre-Season in Spain & South Korea

The Pre-Season for the Chinese Super League 2016 has begun, and I’ve just been 10 days with the 1. team in Spain - at Gran Canary Island. This period is mostly about getting back in game shape and finding the sprint endurance to play 90 minutes at a high level again.

The weather and conditions were top in Spain and we had a solid 3-2 win the other day against the Swedish side Djurgaarden, so looking positive. This pre-season we have to push the limits a bit as we have a crucial Champions League qualification game on February 9th in Shanghai. A 90 minute game where it will be decided if we shall play Champions League this year or not, so the pre-season is even more important than usual for us.

A very positive matter from Spain is one of our young 1997-boys from our Development Squad is looking very well and might be a regular part of the 1. team squad now, which is an important step and signal for our talent development. Also the two young goalkeepers from the 1997-group is working hard and looking sharp training with the 1. team in Spain, so good news for the future.

As we speak; I’m South Korea - just arrived with our Development Squad. We have a 10-day training camp here with 5 games against older opponents and the South Korean U19 national team, so we have some difficult, but great games ahead of us.

Our training sessions in Korea will be another (deeper) step into our club philosophy and concept, where we all the time need to keep focus on educate better players - their game understanding and football intelligence in relation to how we wish to play and develop as a club. I’m really excited looking forward to 10 great days here in South Korea!