The false European Dream

Many Indian youngsters these days have the dream of playing for a top division club in Europe, ideally the English Premier League. In the metros may of them join football schools and academies, but one has to question if this thinking is realistic. And if I am being very honest, then I have to say that these are often false dreams which aren't achievable.

It is great to have dreams and ambitions, but one has to be realistic about what one can achieve plus what level of football one can play. A Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo wasn't just born with natural talent, but thousands of hours of training have gone into their football careers to get to the level they have reached. And it isn't just the hours of training, but the specialised training they have received at their clubs and national teams over the years which have made them what they are.

Things are improving in Indian football, but the necessary level of training is simply not available in our country. The reasons are plenty - bad infrastructure, lack of quality coaching, not enough age group competitions, exposure. The list sadly could go on and on...

Over the years I have received many queries from youngsters who want to play abroad and as I am mainly based in Germany they think I could help. I want to help, but there are restrictions within the system which makes it close to impossible to help teenagers to come and play here. I have told and written to these numerous teenagers, please try to get to the level of a Baichung Bhutia first and then think about the next step, which is playing in Europe or maybe even the developing leagues of US/Canada and Australia these days. And why do I say so? No Indian over the last decade has been able to get to Baichung's level. Now Sunil Chhetri seems to follow in his big footsteps, but still has a long way to go as Chhetri himself would agree.

Getting into European football is a tough ask for an Indian footballer as we are sadly not South American or African. And with tougher European Union legislations things have gotten more and more difficult. There were cases earlier this decade where 14, 15 year old boys from different African countries, who were highly talented, were brought to Belgium to play for different clubs. But if they didn't make it then they were simply dumped on the streets of Brussels or in other cites as they were useless for their agents. Due to these happenings the European Union along with continental body UEFA have gone tough on minors entering Europe and so do not allow the transfer of minors from outside the European Union into Europe as junior footballers.

Simply put, if you are not at least 18 years old, meaning an adult as per law, can sign a professional contract by ourself, then you cannot come into Europe and play football here. And to strenghten your case, you should ideally be a Junior Indian international. If someone is telling you anything else, promising you something, then that is incorrect.

And getting into the United Kingdom is even tougher then England has a law which says only footballers who come from a country which is top 75 in the FIFA World Rankings will get a work permit which is necessary to be allowed to play there as a footballer. Also that player needs to have played 75% of internationals for his country over the last 12 months and that means 'A' internationals for the senior team.

Now there are exceptions, e.g. Baichung Bhutia did get a three year work permit in 1999 to sign for Bury FC, but that was only possible as there was political will and power to get the work permit. But take another Indian example, Sunil Chhetri last year failed to secure a work permit in England otherwise he would have signed a three year contract with Queens Park Rangers FC. These are the problems our top internationals face, what chances do you realistically see for a teenage Indian footballer?

Maybe with these small insights I can help our youngsters understand that this dream is a very difficult one due to the given scenario. And i'd also like to give them a realistic approach. Surely they should dream big, but take it step by step. Then you will achieve your goals...