Bettor.com analyzed the English top flight which has failed to cater to the Asian market in recent years despite some quality players coming through.
As far as people from Asia are concerned, football is a sport and it deserves to be treated that way. Going professional is out of the question and support for aspiring footballers is non-existent.
Nonetheless, Zeeshan ‘Zesh’ Rehman and http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Michael-c25261 Chopra are the biggest examples of players coming through the Asian barrier, only to face extensive racism from the system that seemingly is bent on serving its native residents.
Zesh was arguably one of the best players Fulham had in 2004 and after a couple of brilliant performances started garnering a lot of praise from the previously silent community.
It was all rosy for the centre-back; he played at Craven Cottage, picked up nearly £10,000 per week and was also working his way up the youth ladder with http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/England-c749.
Then things immediately began to decline after he was dropped from the Three Lions’ senior squad and chose to represent http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Pakistan-c755.
Fulham decided to relegate him to the bench and starting farming out for loans, before he eventually dropped down the Championship, playing for Queens Park http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Rangers-c40314. But even at Loftus Road, he failed to make a mark and was scurrying around the divisions
in search of game time.
Rehman then signed with Bradford City, but even after going the extra distance to help the team in its off-pitch ventures, he was unceremoniously given the boot despite being club captain.
Since then the defender has been in Asia, but launched a tirade of attacks on the F.A in 2007 as Michael Chopra wasn’t given a call-up the England team despite being the Championship’s top scorer at the time, staying home while http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/David-Nugent-c10567 featured for
his country.
"Why wasn’t (Chopra) picked ahead of Dave Nugent? He’s the top goal scorer in the Championship but he can’t get in (the England set-up). So he needs to maybe look at his decision and go play for http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/India-c750 instead of hanging on to the dream of playing for England,
because it’s not going to happen, end of discussion."
“I’m pleased with my decision but I had a problem, especially with Eastern Eye. You said I turned my back on England. I didn’t like the way that came across. If you are not getting opportunities when you are playing in the Premier League, then Asian players
are always going to be overlooked. When it comes to it, they need to stick to their roots."
Considering how Asian heritage players are treated in the League, most of them will be seriously discourage to take up an active role in football, even less likely is the chance of them turning professional.
And for youngsters like Adil Nabi (West Bromwich Albion) and Luke Dean (Former Bradford City), who have made it to a decent level, the future looks ominous unless the situation is turned around quickly.
Zesh is already vocal about the gathering support for Asian football and his decision to ply his trade for Pakistan is a testament to his cause. But for the time being, it seems like the thought of someone with South-Asian background playing for England
remains a long shot, no matter how many seminars and anti-racism conferences the F.A hosts.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are the writer's own and do not reflect the official editorial policy of Bettor.com
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