Portsmouth goalkeepers will rejoice at new project in city from Asmir Begovic
Portsmouth alumnus Asmir Begovic has expanded a youth development project into Portsmouth to give opportunities to young goalkeepers.
Begovic, who made his Premier League debut with Pompey back in 2009 at the start of an excellent career as one of the club’s last top-flight players, posted on his X account (7 January) to advertise the new training session venue at King George V Football Complex in Cosham.
The Bosnian ‘keeper, now understudy to Jordan Pickford at Everton, runs the AB1 Academy which has now branched out to Portsmouth – for which he has teamed up with former Blues teammate and fellow goalkeeper Nick Jordan.
The move is an encouraging one for young aspiring ‘keepers in the local area who may be idolising their heroes in the current team at Fratton, and can now sign up and get involved in professionally organised sessions overseen by two former Pompey stoppers.
Begovic shared: “Excited to expand AB GK Academy to this very special location. Looking forward to inspiring young goalkeepers where I started my career here in the UK.
“Teaming up with my good friend and ex-teammate Nick Jordan to lead and run the sessions. Sign up now!”
Asmir Begovic maintains bridges with ex-club Portsmouth
While not directly linked with Portsmouth Football Club, Begovic’s academy is enabling local youngsters to flourish as goalkeepers – an avenue which along with the Blues’ academy setup itself can sometimes be funnelled with a lack of opportunities.
It is a measure of Begovic as a professional that he maintains his fondness for the area, despite the fact he left Pompey for Stoke City in 2010 as the administration-stricken, relegated Blues had to offload many of their squad.
The 37-year-old has played well over 400 professional games – a huge chunk of those in the English top flight – so holds a lot of weight in the game for goalkeepers in England.
Begovic has gone on to play for Chelsea and AC Milan, as well as scooping 63 full caps for Bosnia & Herzegovina.
It is expected that the academy initiative will spike a lot of interest in and around Portsmouth, with the new complex in Cosham only having been built in the past two years.
Those interested can click the link here to get involved.
In other Portsmouth news, a local broadcaster issues a transfer update from Fratton Park on a highly-rated EFL forward.
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