Chennaiyin FC set for pre-season camp in Perugia, Italy
Indian Super League champions Chennaiyin FC is set for a month-long pre-season camp in Perugia, Italy.
Even last year, the foundations of Chennaiyin’s ISL success were built with a one-month pre-season training camp in Perugia, which is located 164km north of Italy’s capital Rome.
Like in 2015, Chennaiyin will be training at the Stadio Ellera, which is located in the Corciano Town Council of Perugia. The ISL holders will also be playing a few practice games against lower division Italian opposition.
The majority of the domestic players reached Perugia earlier today with the foreigners and remaining Indian players expected to report at the training base later in the day. The first training session is scheduled for Tuesday, August 23. Chennaiyin FC will return to India and arrive in Chennai on September 21 ahead of their title defence in the third ISL season.
“The month-long pre-season camp last year made a big difference in our eventual results. The players got the best possible preparation with excellent facilities and some very competitive practice matches. At the same time, the whole squad bonded well on and off the pitch with the Indian and foreign players getting to know each other better ahead of the start of the season.
“This year we want to have a similar preparation and also improve ourselves further following the lessons of last season. The first training session in Perugia starts the road to our title defence with the goal of going all the way again this year,” said Chennaiyin FC manager Marco Materazzi.