Swansea City midfielder Yan Dhanda is willing to offer his services to the Indian national team to help the country develop. The Birmingham-born youngster has represented England at the under 16 and 17 youth level, and holds an overseas citizen of India (OCI) card.
The 23-year-old’s father is from Punjab, while his mother is English. As a result, he holds a British passport and is one of the dozen South Asians that play professional football in the UK. He is among the most influential players from this region, albeit hailing from Birmingham.
Yan Dhanda offers helping hand to Indian football
The youngster referenced India’s recent defeats against Belarus and Bahrain in friendlies, and pointed out that the team could win these games. As a result, he offered his services to the Indian national team to help the others become better.
However, according to the sports ministry guidelines, only home grown players are eligible to represent the national team. This is primarily to place importance on homegrown talent and to promote their progress for the coming years.
So, the rules will need to be changed or broken if Yan Dhanda is to represent the national team.
The young midfielder is amazed at the way fans support football in India. He made the trip to India in 2019 as well, after several requests. But for him to represent India right now is not possible owing to the rules that are in place.
