Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Abu Dhabi: Former Liverpool man Ryan Babel says he has high hopes of helping new club Al Ain regain their AFC Champions League title in next year’s edition of Asia's premier club competition.
The 28-year-old Dutch winger joins UAE champions Al Ain from Turkey’s Kasimpasa and arrived in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday. His is reported to have signed a two-year deal.
As Al Ain’s first signing of the year, Babel will join Ghana international Asamoah Gyan and Korea Republic’s Lee Myung-joo as part of the 2002/03 AFC Champions League winners’ foreign contingent.
“I am very happy to move to Al Ain,” said Babel, who will be presented to the media on Thursday night. “I want to regain the AFC Champions League and the President’s Cup. Observers of Asian football have a good knowledge of Al Ain, they are a team full of stars and armed with a history full of achievements and championships.
“I’m very excited to start the season with the team, especially since negotiations were conducted in an excellent manner with high professionalism between all parties. I really wanted to represent Al Ain and I hope to repay the confidence shown in me by the coaching staff, led by Zlatko Dalic, so that I can make the fans of the team happy.”
Babel began his professional career in his homeland with Ajax in 2004, before transferring to the English Premier League three years later, where he made 146 appearances for Liverpool. Three-and-a-half years later, he moved to Germany’s Hoffenheim but returned to Ajax in 2012 before transferring to Kasimpasa. He also has 46 caps for the Netherlands.
Photo: AFP