New Delhi, Nov 24 (IANS) Tottenham Hotspur legends Ledley King and Ossie Ardiles will be visiting India to support a series of events and activities arranged by the Club to engage with fans and promote the development of football at grassroots level.
Former Club captain, Ledley, and 1978 World Cup-winner, Ossie, will arrive in Mumbai on Friday and attend a watch party of Tottenham Hotspur’s Premier League clash against Aston Villa on Sunday at Dublin Square, Phoenix Market City.
While in Mumbai, Ledley and Ossie will also take part in a cultural city tour and charitable engagements, before heading to Bengaluru on Monday. Here, the iconic former players will appear at a Legends evening with Spurs fans in the city and attend the Indian Super League match between Bengaluru FC and Punjab FC as special guests at Sri Kanteerava Stadium on November 30.
Throughout the week-long visit to India across both cities, Tottenham Hotspur’s Global Football Coaching team will work with local organisations to deliver training programmes for young players, with the aim of developing the game at grassroots level in India.
This includes a bespoke session delivered in partnership with OSCAR Foundation – a community-based organisation that uses the power of football to encourage children to stay in school and equip them with skills to make them resilient and future-ready. The charity has empowered 15,000+ children and youth in low-income communities in India since 2010.
Ledley King, a one-club man who made 323 appearances and lifted the 2008 League Cup as captain having progressed through the Club’s Academy, said: “This will be my first visit to India and I am extremely excited. I have heard so many good things about our strong fanbase across the country, the passion for football, the food and the culture – I can’t wait to experience it all, spend time with our fans and support the work of our coaching teams.”
Ossie Ardiles, who famously arrived at Spurs following his World Cup success, alongside compatriot Ricky Villa, and went on to lift the FA Cup and UEFA Cup before later managing the Club, said: “This will be my second visit to India in the space of five years – I know first-hand how passionate our fans are in this part of the world and I’m looking forward to meeting as many as possible during our visits to Mumbai and Bengaluru.”
–IANS
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