Gilberto Silva training in Detroit
August 6, 2010
Apparently Gilberto has been training hard in Detroit. He’s been talking on Twitter about how he’s been hard at work – and he’s been spotted in training before Panathinaikos’s game against AC Milan.
This article about Panathinaikos’s training in Detroit was written by Jo-Ann Barnas for Freepress (www.freep.com).
Two massive equipment trunks were carried onto the field, and out came dozens of pairs of soccer cleats and other items that would make the team’s 1 1/2 -hour practice complete Wednesday at the Oakland University soccer field.
In the distance, the team could see that it had company — sort of.
Several hundred yards away, from the second level of a parking garage, members of Oakland’s men’s varsity soccer team and other students — some with binoculars — watched Greece’s top professional club team run through drills in preparation for Friday’s international friendly against AC Milan at the Silverdome.
They could see Brazil’s Gilberto Silva running wind sprints in the middle of a pack of players. They could see the blond-Mohawk-style cut of France’s Djibril Cisse, and his elaborate stretching routine.
“It’s like watching a workshop,” Jason Perry, OU men’s assistant soccer coach, said with a smile.
For Panathinaikos it was clear that the team took every step of training Wednesday very seriously.
Panathinaikos, which defeated Inter Milan, 3-2, in an exhibition Tuesday night in Toronto, will spend three days in the Detroit area. But goalkeeper Alexandros Tzorvas said there’ll be no time for sightseeing or other fun activities on the trip.
“We travel all over the world with this job,” he said. “We know all the airports, all the hotels and, of course, all the stadiums. We don’t the have the opportunity to discover all the places we go. It’s a pity, but it’s our job.”
AC Milan also practiced later Wednesday evening.
Read more: Panathinaikos soccer squad all business at practice | freep.com | Detroit Free Press http://www.freep.com/article/20100805/SPORTS18/8050448/Detroit-trip-is-not-for-kicks#ixzz0vq9u4eS3