Dheeraj Singh Moirangthem in advanced talks with Motherwell FC

Indian U17 star Dheeraj Singh Moirangthem is in advanced talks over a contract with Scottish Premiership club Motherwell FC.

The 17-year-old goalkeeper was released by All India Football Federation's developmental side Indian Arrows in December 2017 on mutual consent. It was Dheeraj who said no to a three-year contract offered by the club as he wanted to experience what it would be like to play alongside top players at a top European club.

In February, Dheeraj flew out to Scotland where he joined Motherwell FC on a three-week trial. He managed to impress the bosses at the club and now, his agent has confirmed to Sportskeeda that talks are ongoing about a potential contract.

Since joining the club on trial, the youngster has trained with the first team members, travelled with the team for an away Cup tie against Dundee and even featured in a friendly match. In his brief stint, he managed to impress the club's Chief Operating Officer and Director, Alan Burrows, who took to Twitter to express the same.

However, even if the two parties reach an agreement, a major obstacle could be the work permit situation in the United Kingdom. While the general consensus is that Dheeraj will be able to sign for any club in the UK once he is 18 years old, the ruling states: "For the Scottish FA to give their approval, the player in question must have played 75 percent of his nation's competitive games excluding friendlies in the two years prior to the date of application. Furthermore, the country the player is coming from must be in the top 70 of the FIFA rankings."

Speaking to Sportskeeda a few weeks back, Dheeraj had said how difficult it was adjusting to the cold weather conditions in Scotland. However, he had stressed on the importance of learning new things. Whether or not the deal works out, we hope that this experience will only help him improve as a footballer.