Kolhapur-born Aniket Jadhav, striker with the India U-17 World Cup squad two years ago, will undergo a training spell at English club Blackburn Rovers.
He is part of ISL’s Jamshedpur FC and will be the first Indian to train at Blackburn’s academy at Brockhall, Lancashire.
Blackburn is owned by Venkys London Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Pune-based poultry firm Venkateshwara Hatcheries Group (VH Group).
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Helping young Indians
Balaji Rao, club owner, said: “We, as supporters of sport, especially football, want to help young Indian talent.
“Our academy is one of the finest Category 1 Academy in the UK.
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“This training stint will help Aniket to develop technically as a player.”
Jadhav said: “I would like to thank Blackburn Rovers FC for believing in me and my ability and inviting me to train at their world class academy.”
Mukul Choudari, CEO, Jamshedpur FC, said: “We are very happy for Aniket.
Rare opportunity
“Very rarely do Indian football players get such an opportunity and if they get it at this age, it is just fantastic, as this will only help him grow and enhance his skills further.”
He added: “It is going to be a win-win for everybody.
“As Jamshedpur FC, we congratulate Aniket for his talent and the opportunity that he’s got, which we are sure he will make the best of and come back as a much better player and make us proud.”