Asian players in English football

Hi,

I thought I'd share an opinion I have on the Kick it Out campaign.

The racism situation has improved greatly over the years. On Saturday's Football Focus they had a piece talking about it. But they only really spoke to and about black and mixed raced players, and how racism has effected them.

It is great that we have so many black players playing in English football. The work that has been done to get this far has been heroic, and it is great that the work is on going to improve the situation further. But some thing I would like to see now is the same happen regarding Asian players in English football.


There are many great Asian players across the globe. But very few play in English football, even though many Asian people live in the UK happily and successfully.

It is a known fact that Park Ji Sun regularly gets the chant 'Park Eats Dogs', and whether you like it or not, and whether people mean it or not, that is racism, or at least picking on him differently because of the country he is from.
I am sure the people who do that chant only see it as a light hearted joke and are NOT racists, but if I was an Asian player, I am pretty sure that would be enough to put me off moving over here to play.

They love English football in Asia, and the young footballers over there should be dreaming of playing over here. But it doesnt happen.

Sorting this issue out and boosting the Asian presence in English football would be great for English football, both on the pitch, globally and financially. Plus we are missing out on some great talent.


The work that has been done so far has been amazing. But now I think its time to spread the campaign out further.

Opinions? Any one agree or disagree? Discuss.

 

Casual racism is a problem, no question (e.g. Koreans eating dogs) but I disagree that there are many Asian players good enough for the Premier League or even the Championship. Maybe 10-15 would be good enough? And I can't think of anyone who wouldn't be South Korean or Japanese.

 

Is players are good enough then they will make it regardless of their colour or race.

 

The lack of Asian players is concerning, but in particular, Indian players and that's not just in the UK! I know Harpal Singh had a go at Leeds United years and years ago but disappeared off the map, while Inter Milan organised a talent hunt in India to search for quality players. With such a big population, that must some decent footballers out there.

 

You need the infrastructure though. With the setting up of the MLS and grassroots coaching, the number of quality American players playing across Europe is rising. The same needs to happen in India, China, etc.

 

To be honest I rarely notice the minorities who ply their trade in the premier league.

Personally, I think this is the way it should be, I wish everyone would stop forcing the issue.