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Al Ahli signs a three-year deal with Cannavaro to act as technical consultant and ambassador

Following recent medical advice to retire, Fabio Cannavaro has gone on to sign a three-year contract with Al-Ahli to act as a technical consultant and ambassador for the Club in various countries around the world. This was announced during a press conference held at the "Red Castle" on Saturday 9th in Dubai which was attended by Abdullah Saeed Al Naboudah, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Ahmed Khalifa Hammad, CEO of Al Ahli Club.

Fabio Cannavaro, who played with Al Ahli for one season, has hung up his boots after a receiving specialist medical advice in the UAE and Italy due to an ongoing knee problem but he will continue with the Club in this new capacity.

Abdulla Al Naboudah said Al Ahli Club is following in the footsteps of the big clubs in the world who appoint international stars and top players as advisors and ambassadors to serve the objectives of the club, whether in the marketing or technical fields. This influenced Al Ahli's decision to appoint Cannavaro to be an ambassador in various internal and external forums, as well as being a technical adviser to the Chairman.

Al Naboudah added, "The various media wrote previously about Cannavaro's injury and his absence in the latest rounds of the last season, and so I confirm that Al Ahli has lost a leader and a brilliant player, but as the same time gained an administrator, after appointing him as an adviser and an ambassador for the club".

Al Naboudah assured that the decision was taken because Cannavaro is the best one to carry out this role due to his long experience on International pitches.

"By taking this step we have not introduced something new as there are international clubs who benefit from their star players who defended for their slogans, like Real Madrid who recently appointed former player Zain Eldin Zidane as director of football, Rue Costa as Benfica's manager and many others. The first mission for Cannavaro will be in Singapore with Toshiba, sponsor of the Senior Football Team, in September," Al Naboudah said.

Cannavaro emphasized that the injury was behind his decision to retire, as he underwent several medical tests during recent weeks and his Italian doctor advised him to retire. He revealed that other clubs worldwide, especially Juventus, offered him a four-year contract to play the same role, but he has chosen to stay in Dubai, given the strong relations with the masses of Al Ahli and its Chairman Abdullah Al Naboudah.

He said, "I decided to declare my retirement here in Dubai, and now the crucial moment has come, and I will work with my full strength to succeed in my new career.  I thank the Club and His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Al Ahli Club, for giving me this great confidence."

Whilst Cannavaro will be a loss on the pitch, Al Ahli has signed Brazilians Grafite, Jaja and Luis Jimenez for the new season.