Ahli Al-Khalil Club played a second official friendly match with Club “Deportivo Palestino” within the training camp that the team organized in Santiago, Chile. Club Palestino hosted Ahli Al-Khalil team in a second official game within the Ahli’s training program in Chile, in the presence of the Palestinian Ambassador in Chile, Mr. Imad Nabil, Palestine Consul, Mr. Ammar Zorba, Cultural Attaché at the Embassy, Mr. Bassem Nasssar, President of Club Palestino, Mr. Fernando Awad, members of Club Palestino’s Board of Directors, Bank of Palestine’s Advisor for Latin America affairs, Mr. Jorge Facarit, Director of Bank of Palestine’s Marketing and Public Relations Department, Mr, , Thaer Hamayel and Mrs. Hiba Tantash from the Bank’s staff, in addition to a large number of businessmen and more than two thousand fans from the Palestinian community who cheered throughout the entire game.
The two teams entered the field on Palestinian tunes and national anthem and marched through Palestino’s official uniform that was prepared exclusively for this occasion, a fifty square meters with the colors of the Palestinian flag. The two teams exchanged gifts, where each Ahli player dedicated a Palestinian scarf to a colleague from Club Palestino.
The match was held at 10:30AM at La Cisterna Satdium, owned by Club Palestino, under the hot weather, as the committee decided that the game should be played through three rounds, thirty minutes each, to ensure the safety of the players. Palestino Club is the Champion of the Chile Cup and occupies the fourth place in the Professional League; the team includes professional players with high experience, competency and technical skills, and plays within a structured plan.
Ahli Al-Khalil Club played an extraordinary game and was encouraged and appreciated by the audiences’ cheers, especially since this is the first time that the team plays against a structured team with high expertise. The hosting team scored three goals within the first 30 minutes of the match through powerful shots outside the lines after wonderful passes of the ball; nevertheless, the Ahli team played well with high proficiency and harmony between the three lines and reached the goal’s net several times through the player Batran, who dodged the defenders and made a strong shot from inside the box that hit the foot of the defender; the players Halman, Shadi and Ahmad Maher made several shots that did not result in any goals.
At the beginning of the second round, Club Palestino scored their fourth goal and continued to play with bold and coordinated attacks and with shots by both teams, and with a wide pass from Shadi Shaban to Halman who passed a strong shot from outside the box scoring a beautiful goal that made the audience stand in encouragement. Club Palestino scored their fifth goal before the end of the second round. During the third round, the Ahli Club persisted to score more goals and reached the goal’s net several times, with a perfected pass from Roberto Kalton to reach Ahmad Maher who shot the ball between the keeper’s hands; at the end of the game, the referee cancelled Kalton’s goal due to offside, ending the game as is.
Last Saturday, Ahli Al-Khalil Club held a training camp, sponsored by Bank of Palestine, in order to enhance the communication with the Palestinian community in Chile and strengthen the sports relationship between the Palestinian teams and clubs inside and outside of Palestine. The Bank’s sponsorship to the training camp and sports matches is due to its vision to enhance the standards of Palestinian sports and soccer players, allowing them to gain advanced skills and expertise.
Club Deportivo Palestino is one of the most important clubs in the Lain American continent and was able to reach Latin America championships of different levels. In 2015, the Club was the runner-up in Chile’s Premiere League. In 2014, the Club was the champion of the Republic and qualified to the League of Latin American countries. The club has been operating for several years with sponsorship from Bank of Palestine.
Ahli Al-Khalil Club is the winner of Palestine Cup 2015 after their victory over Shijaia Football Club at the match that took place at Al-Hussein Bin Ali Stadium in Hebron; the Club plays within the premier league in Palestine with sponsorship from Bank of Palestine as well.