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Premier League side Crystal Palace have teamed up with ISL side Mumbai City FC and Star Sports and will seek 16-19 year olds in December, and one of them will get a chance to train with its academy. Mumbai City FC are managed by former Premier League manager Peter Reid and also have former Eagles midfielder Andre Moritz amongst their ranks.
The initial trial will be held on 11th and 12th of December and from there the chosen ones will be invited to show their skills at Barclays Premier League Live in front of Premier League legends Robbie Fowler and Peter Schmeichel.
The club will be sending a delegation led by club ambassador and former striker Mark Bright - to Barclays Premier League Live, the Premier League's international fan park. This is what Bright who scored more than 100 goals for the club had to say about the initiative:
“This will be the chance of a lifetime. The winner of the competition will get a fantastic experience playing at the Academy and then go back to India to become an ambassador for Palace.”
“This is a unique initiative. Everyone has a favorite local team and favorite overseas team – we want football fans in India to follow us,” he adds. “We know cricket is the number one sport in India, but football is global and it would be great to see an Indian-born player in the Premier League one day. They would become an idol and an inspiration.”
The club’s chief executive Phil Alexander expressed his delightment saying, “We are very excited to be going to India to show ourselves to a new army of fans. The Premier League is booming in India and it’s a great chance for us to extend the club’s reach.”
A Mumbai city representative had this to add, “India and Mumbai in particular, has a lot of football talent waiting to be harnessed and promoted. This initiative will provide a great platform for the youth of the city to showcase their skills and win the opportunity of a lifetime.”
The club will also hold two days of coaching sessions 12-16-year-olds at two local schools, led by UEFA ‘A’ License coach Gary Mulcahey, and in partnership with the Magic Bus charity.
