“I think David Silva has got his Asian background,” said the top British-Asian footballer, Michael Chopra. “You look at him and he’s obviously played for Spain and I think it’s huge he’s playing in the Spanish league at the moment – one of the best countries in the world. It would be hard from him to turn the chance down to play for Spain and go to whichever country he could play for, because as a footballer you’ve got a chance to play in the World Cup and be successful and you’ve got to think about that.”

Nobody could fault Silva for choosing Spain and not just for the reasons Chopra mentioned. Silva is Spanish – born in the Canary Islands. He has lived all his life in Spain.

“I think it’s the same with the other guy who went to play for France,” said Chopra. “He’s probably done exactly the same. Being a footballer, you want to play in the best competitions in the world and I think at the time other countries might not have been good enough.” There is no doubt about that. Dhorasoo was born in Mauritius to Indian parents – neither of which could be mentioned in the same breath as France, let alone compete with them.

He moved to France as a child and was developed as a player through their youth system. The same applies to Silva. Of course they would choose to play for France and Spain if they were good enough, which they obviously were, but both players were developed through the systems operating in Europe. They are French and Spanish, but both are still role models for aspiring Asian players.

“I think you’ve got to take things as you can and think about what’s your best position and what’s your best chance of being successful in your career,” said Chopra. Good advice, but why have France and Spain produced world-beaters while Britain has not?

Quality Coaching:

“I personally believe that it’s really down to coaches and things like that,” said Chopra. “France and Spain have probably got the best coaches. They know how to develop players. You look at the so called lesser countries who aren’t in the top twenty in world football, it’s like the same. I think you look at Spain they’ve got the top coaches.”

But why have Spain and France succeeded while Britain has not? “You look at England,” said Chopra. “They’ve got top coaches and I think that’s probably what it’s down to. I think they’re getting better coaching advice rather than the player ability – things like that. I think it’s probably the coaching.”

Development Paths:

Former professional footballer and current FA coach Noel Blake knows that there are many issues that affect the development of young players, not just coaching. “Players also need to take more ownership of their learning,” Blake told us. “A lot of it is placed on coaches. When things go wrong, it’s the coach’s fault, but when things go right, it’s the player that have done it. It’s a two-way thing. Players need, if they want to succeed, to put themselves out, same as the coaches – coaching pathways. You need to put yourself out there as a player.”

Young Asian players are no different. “There are a number of young players out there who like the idea of being a footballer – like the trimmings – but they don’t want to put the work in to get it,” Blake said. “They want to run before they can walk and that’s part of the problem in terms of development and I’m talking at all levels. If you want to become a player, you’ve got to want to do the work. You’ve got to take the learning path – the learning steps. It’s like a baby learning. A baby doesn’t come out of the mother’s womb and start to run around. There’s teething steps – there’s teething issues – and they need to be ironed out.”

Patience:

Blake calls for patience – convinced that the breakthrough for British-Asian players will come. “I’ve seen players in the academies,” he told us. “I don’t know what the solution is. As I said before if you’re out there and you’re playing, whether you’re black, white, pink or whatever colour and you prove you are good, if somebody’s out there and they think you’re good enough, they’ll bring you to the football club. That’s what I’ve known all my time in football.”

And that’s the bottom line. Football clubs tend not to look at the ethnic origins of players. Why should they? Their concern is whether the boy can play and does he fit in with the ethos of the club. Nevertheless, the under-representation of British-Asians in football remains a concern, resulting in initiatives to tackle the problem. Talent is slipping through football’s fingers.