Al Ahli release former Juventus defender Cannavaro

Al Ahli have released former Juventus and Real Madrid defender Fabio Cannavaro.

The 2006 World Cup, Ballon d’Or and World Player of the Year award winner had left Juventus last summer to see out his career in Dubai.

"I cannot share everything that is happening in the club at the moment, but we are taking adequate measures to ensure Al Ahli comes back to its former glory days," President Abdullah Saeed Al Naboudah told Gulf News.

"Having strong foreign players is one of the most important aspects in our league as they are the ones who can make a difference and win you games. They should have the ability to change the face of the team even if you have a mediocre set of eight UAE players.

"Yes we do have Cannavaro, but that is the market. We can bring players and sell players and transfer players, and all of this is possible.

“I will say once again that there will be a major overhaul. And besides, we always knew that none of our foreign players will stay and that was announced already in the past."