Easah Suliman, Dilan Markanday, Otis Khan, Sai Sachdev, Aqsa Mushtaq and Brandon Khela are among the players who had a decent week in the Beautiful Game; our resident expert Dev Trehan brings you all the details in the latest edition of South Asians in Football Weekly
The latest edition of South Asians in Football Weekly is out after another great week for the community as part of the Beautiful Game…
Former England youth captain Easah Suliman is one of four British footballers to partner Pakistan for the FIFA World Cup qualifying double-header against Cambodia.
The Aston Villa academy graduate, who featured last season in a the first British South Asians of their kind in the football team of the season, is joined in the Pakistani team by that of Grimsby Town Otis Khan, former QPR youth Harun Hamid and former England U17 midfielder based in Cyprus Rahis Nabi.
Pakistan will play in Phnom Penh on October 12, before hosting Cambodia in the second leg at the Jinnah Stadium in Islamabad on October 17.
Londoner and former India coach Stephen Constantine will take charge of Pakistan for the first time when they take on Cambodia.
Aqsa Mushtaq, featured in the first-ever timeline documenting the journey of players of South Asian descent, reflects on her making history as the first player of Pakistani descent to play professionally in Italy.
OFI Crete announced the signing of Aqsa Mushtaq After Sky Sports News last week revealed that the attacking midfielder was set to join the club.
Sky Sports News announced the news that Mushtaq – who spent the second half of last season at Championship side Lewes FC – was ready to return to Greece where she enjoys a great reputation as a player.
Bradford-born Mushtaq played for Crete-based Avantes Chalkida last year, winning the league’s Most Valuable Player award.
A first-of-its-kind timeline documenting the history of players of South Asian descent in modern English football has been launched, hoping to inspire a new generation.
Mushtaq appears in the first timeline documenting the history of players of South Asian descent in modern women’s football after moving to Naples in 2020 and becoming the first player of Pakistani origin to join a women’s team playing in the Italian top division.
Take a look back at Dilan Markanday scoring for Blackburn Rovers on his English Premier League debut on the opening day of the season.
Dilan Markanday continued his excellent form for Blackburn Rovers by playing a key role in two Rovers goals in four first half minutes in a match 4-0 victory at QPR.
Markanday played with Joe Rankin-Costello, who cut back for Tyrhys Dolan to score the opener at Loftus Road.
Highlights from the Sky Bet Championship match between Queens Park Rangers and Blackburn Rovers.
The former Tottenham youngster then brought on Sammie Szmodics, who crossed for Arnor Sigurdsson to double Blackburn’s lead, before running away in the second half.
Brandon Khela made history last week, with Sky Sports News exclusively revealing that the 18-year-old had become the first British South Asian to play Championship football for Birmingham City.
The central midfielder came off the bench in a 4-1 triumph over Huddersfield. Birmingham followed up with a 3-1 victory against West Brom but since parted ways with manager John Eustace.
Khela started playing football at the age of three and could have joined local club Coventry City, but opted for a move to Birmingham after being scouted by the club. Since then he has played at all age levels for Birmingham City.
The former Arden Academy student has already represented England at youth level. Brandon isn’t the only talented footballer in the family, with his younger brother Reiss opening up scholarships with Leicester City earlier this year.
Sai Sachdev is part of the England U19 squad for this month’s U19 European qualifiers.
The Sheffield United youngster will travel with England to Podgorica where they will face the hosts on October 11, before matches against Wales on October 14 and Austria on October 17.
Supporters groups Leicester For All and Foxes Pride have joined forces ahead of Stoke City visit to King Power to launch the My city, my shirt photo exhibition, celebrating the diversity of the city of Leicester and its fans.
Both groups are affiliated with the Fans for Diversity campaign and speakers at the event included Leicester Mayor Susan Barton and Leicester City women’s captain Sophie Howard.
Addressed exclusively to Sky Sports News, Nilesh Chauhan, head of Fans for Diversity, said: “There is a huge passion for football in Leicester, with more than half of the city’s residents from diverse ethnic backgrounds. This initiative helps to highlight this diversity in a positive way.
“More than 100 people from all walks of life attended the event – and the majority came away inspired. There is a lot of work to be done at all levels of football in Leicester and it is a good platform on which to support. , at the local and national level.”
Earlier in the week, West Ham received an award in recognition of achieving the Premier League’s Advanced Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Standard.
This is the second time West Ham have received the award, with the Premier League concluding that the Hammers have continued to progress in this area and deserve to maintain their advanced standard.
West Ham United vice-chairman Karren Brady said: “Throughout our long and illustrious history in East London, we have many reasons to be proud as a club, and our continued success as a leader in equity only leads us towards even higher heights.”
Kuljit Randhawa, head of diversity and inclusion strategy at the Premier League, added: “West Ham have made excellent progress in creating safe and inclusive environments for their staff, players and fans.
“The club’s work to improve South Asian pathways to the Academy, including parental engagement, also deserves praise. We look forward to continuing to support West Ham to improve their work in this area.”
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