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What's the story?
Dheeraj Singh Moirangthem's move to Scotland is proving to be beneficial for the youngster's goalkeeping skills. He recently played a practice match alongside the players of his trial club Motherwell FC.
In case you didn't know...
Dheeraj came into the limelight after his exceptional stint at the U17 World Cup and since then has promised some quality football. After the World Cup, he joined the Indian Arrows, the All India Football Federations developmental squad.
Tthe youngster was labelled as the "find of the tournament" by legendary Bhaichung Bhutia after his performance at the World Cup. However, after his stint in India, the youngster decided to explore foreign ground by shifting to Scotland for a trial period with the Scottish League team Motherwell FC.
The heart of the matter
After having declined a contract renewal with the Indian Arrows in December last year, there were many social media posts suggesting that Dheeraj will be flying to Scotland and to give a trial at Motherwell FC.
While waiting for his documents to arrive, the youngster trained under David James, a former goalkeeper for England and current coach of the ISL's Kerala Blasters. He then travelled to Scotland to join Motherwell on a three-week trial.
No, a video has emerged where the youngster is seen playing his first practice match alongside the players of the Scottish Premiership club. Here's the video:
As one can see in the video, Dheeraj pulled off quite a few stunning saves during the match.
With this exposure abroad, Dheeraj hopes to follow in the footsteps of Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, the goalkeeper of the Indian team, who is also the first Indian to play in the Europa League and the European first division.
What's next?
The youngster's trial at Motherwell is scheduled to carry on for at least three weeks. If the Scottish club is impressed by Dheeraj, he will be required to wait till he turns 18 in July in order to sign his professional contract.
Author's take
India is budding with young talent and Dheeraj making a name for himself on foreign ground will be a proud moment for the nation.
