Abu Dhabi's Al Jazira appoint Davidsen as Director of Football

Dubai - The 37-year-old Dane has previously worked alongside high-profile managers - former England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson and former Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas

Arabian Gulf League club Al Jazira have appointed Mads Davidsen as Director of Football, the club announced on Thursday.
The 37-year-old Dane comes in with plenty of experience, having worked in different countries around the globe. This will mark his first stint in the Middle East.
Davidsen has worked alongside high-profile managers - former England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson and former Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas.
Davidsen joins from 2018 Chinese Super League champions Shanghai SIPG FC, where he was the Technical Director.
During his time in China, he was the assistant coach to Eriksson and also held the post of head of recruitment at Guangzhou R&F FC. He reunited with the Swede again at Shanghai SIPG FC.
Davidsen will look to form a fruitful partnership with coach Marcel Keizer at Al Jazira and while the focus will be on the first team, the Dane will have a particularly keen eye on the club's academy and youth set-up.
Davidsen will look to harness the club's famous academy and continue to create a pool of young players who can break into the first team.
"Successful football clubs are often built on the quality of their academies," Davidsen said on Thursday. 
"We will need an effective scouting and recruitment set-up in place of course, but our ability to bring talented young players through the system and into the first team will be key to a sustainable future. I'm eager to work with my new colleagues and ensure we have the very best resources in place for that," he added.
The club said that Davidsen, who is currently in Spain, will initially work remotely and will move to the UAE capital, once travel restrictions, due to Covid-19, are lifted.
"We're thrilled to be welcoming someone with Mads' experience to the club," Group CEO Nick Garcia said.
Al Jazira have won the League twice in 2010-11 and 2016-17.
james@khaleejtimes.com