The latest edition of South Asians in Football Weekly is out after another eventful week for the community in the Beautiful Game…
Trailblazer Anwar Uddin will return to the touchline as England C assistant manager, Sky Sports News understands.
Former Aldershot Town assistant Uddin, who has previously managed at Glebe FC and at Ware, will re-unite with long-serving boss Paul Fairclough, with the England C non-league team expected to travel to Wales to play Cymru C at the end of March.
Ex-Dagenham and Redbridge captain Uddin won an FA Youth Cup with West Ham, before making his senior debut at Bristol Rovers in 2002 when he became the first British-Bangladeshi league player in English football history.
Sky Sports News exclusively revealed back in 2022 that Uddin had become the first British South Asian to become assistant manager of an England men’s side.
Uddin was responsible for bringing in three South Asian heritage coaches to support the team for their last game at Cymru, creating one of the most ethnically diverse dugouts in England’s international football history.
England beat Cymru C 1-0 on home soil last year in the fourth fixture between the two sides in six years. They lead the head-to-head record 2-1, with the 2019 clash between the two sides ending in a draw.
Khan ‘must consider’ Pakistan
Luton Town striker Sam Khan “must consider” the prospect of playing for Pakistan, according to Footballistan podcast host Shahrukh Sohail.
Khan headed home Luton’s winner in the last round of the Women’s FA Cup, setting up a lucrative home tie against WSL side Brighton this weekend.
Footballistan podcast host Shahrukh Sohail tells Sky Sports News’ Dev Trehan that football is now too big to ignore in Pakistan with great potential for further growth
The forward, who has overseas experience and played for Women’s National League clubs including Cambridge United and Actonians, has scored four goals in her last four matches.
Podcast host and former Coventry United commercial executive Sohail is convinced that British-Pakistani Khan could replicate that form at international level if she wanted to go down that route.
“Playing for Pakistan is definitely something that Sam must consider, not least because she would have tens of thousands of people supporting her,” Footballistan podcast host Sohail told Sky Sports News.
“She has had a good football education and has gained plenty of experience playing in America and at different levels of the English football pyramid.
“Sam would be a great mentor for the younger players and is someone who I’m sure would score goals in a Pakistan shirt.”
Wealdstone’s Allarakhia lines up against Salah
Tarryn Allarakhia enjoyed a day he’ll never forget as he came on against Egypt for his international debut.
Sky Sports News revealed in the last edition of South Asians in Football Weekly that the Wealdstone winger was set to line up against Liverpool superstar Mohamed Salah, before jetting off with Tanzania to the Africa Cup of Nations, which is live and exclusive on Sky Sports.
Allarakhia, who has mixed Indian and East African heritage, played 45 minutes in a 2-0 loss at the Cairo International Stadium in a game which saw Salah miss a penalty for the hosts.
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Interest grows in ‘crown jewel’ Dhanda
Hearts face competition from English Championship clubs for the signature of Ross County sensation Yan Dhanda.
Watch all the angles after Yan Dhanda scored directly from a corner against Hearts’ fierce Edinburgh rivals Hibs in the Scottish Premiership last season
The Scottish Premiership side are interested in signing Dhanda either now in the summer, but have not yet been able to agree a fee with Ross County, with Wigan among the English sides with interest.
Ross County’s Yan Dhanda scored this sublime free-kick against Hearts in the Scottish Premiership
Dhanda has entered the last six months of his contract and can negotiate with clubs outside of Scotland about a free transfer move in the summer.
He scored one of the best goals of his career away at Hearts at the end of 2023, curling into the top right corner from a 25-yard free-kick in a 2-2 draw at Tynecastle.
Yan Dhanda joins people from across the game to celebrate Sky Sports’ groundbreaking work and commitment to British South Asians in Football
The former Liverpool youngster joined Ross County as a free agent on a two-year deal from Swansea in the summer of 2022.
Dhanda has scored eight goals and contributed 14 assists in 51 Scottish Premiership appearances, and was described by Staggies’ fans’ group The County Corner last week as the “crown jewel of the Dingwall side”.
Dillon De Silva joined Torquay permanently after a successful loan last season
Dillon De Silva scored and grabbed an assist in a man of the match display as he helped Torquay United pick up their first point of 2024.
De Silva smashed home a second-half equaliser off the post against Eastbourne Borough, before the Sri Lanka international laid on Will Jenkins Davies for Torquay’s second. But Decarrey Sheriff snatched an added-time equaliser for Eastbourne as the match ended 2-2.
Imran Kayani was also named man of the match as he scored twice in Whitehawk’s dramatic 3-2 win against Margate.
Kayani opened up exclusively to Sky Sports News last year about his desire to play for Pakistan, with the former England Schoolboys international going on to make his debut for the Shaheens in a friendly with Saudi Arabia in November.
Nathan Minhas was also on target at the weekend, getting Slough Town’s opener and the club’s first goal of 2024 in a 3-1 win for the Rebels against Taunton Town.
Minhas now has 11 for the season, with the victory extending Slough’s unbeaten home run to 14 games.
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