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India's U17 World Cup hero Dheeraj Singh Moirangthem has been offered a three-year contract by Scottish top division side Motherwell FC, after a two-month training spell at the club.
Dheeraj, who had been plying his trade at the Indian Arrows in the I-League, has impressed one and all with his performances in both the league and during the U17 World Cup, which was held in India. The teenaged sensation further went on to impress in the AFC U19 Championship qualifier against Yemen last year.
After playing for the Indian Arrows till December last year, Dheeraj went on to have a training stint with Kerala Blasters, before making his much-awaited move to Europe, where he was given yet another training stint at Scottish Premiership side Motherwell FC.
Having trained at Motherwell for around two months now, the teenaged custodian has finally impressed the bosses at the club, who have offered him a 3-year-contract, according to his agent.
However, the star keeper faces certain problems with regards to getting a work permit in the UK.
Football players looking to ply their trade in the UK need to fulfil either of two conditions, in order to get the work permit. Either their country needs to be higher than 70 in the FIFA rankings, or they must have played 75 percent or more of the domestic fixtures in their home country.
It is safe to state that Dheeraj has not fulfilled either of these conditions yet. To add to that, he cannot sign a contract with Motherwell for at least another three months (till he turns 18), according to FIFA regulations.
However, both the Dheeraj camp and the Motherwell officials believe that an exception could be made for the Indian teenager, and are hopeful that he could join the club ahead of the upcoming season.
With this, Dheeraj joins the likes of Mohammed Salim (Celtic), Bhaichung Bhutia (Bury FC), Sunil Chhetri (Sporting Lisbon and Kansas City Wizards), Subrata Paul (FC Vestsjaelland), Gurpreet Singh Sandhu (Stabaek FK), and Romeo Fernandes (Atletico Paranaense), as one among the long line of Indian footballers who have played abroad.
