Leicester's Hamza Choudhury is proud of his heritage, says Swansea's Yan Dhanda; Dhanda says Choudhury was a nightmare to play against as a youngster; Anwar Uddin says pair are great role models adding "it's the most exciting time for British South Asians in football that I can remember."
Monday 8 February 2021 11:37, UK
Leicester midfielder Hamza Choudhury is a fantastic footballer who is fiercely proud of his identity, fellow British South Asian player Yan Dhanda has told Sky Sports News
Dhanda and Choudhury are the highest-profile British South Asian footballers in the top two divisions of English football, alongside Aston Villa and Wales left-back Neil Taylor, and Stoke central defender Danny Batth.
At 23, Choudhury, whose father is from Grenada in the Caribbean and whose mother hails from Bangladesh, is 14 months older than former Liverpool youngster Dhanda. The pair have played against each a number times on their journey through the youth ranks.
Choudhury became the first player of Bangladeshi origin to grace the Premier League when he came on in a home win for Leicester against Tottenham in November 2017. Taylor, Zesh Rehman, Michael Chopra and Jimmy Carter are the only other British South Asians known to have featured in the division before Leicester's former U23 captain.
In the last six months, Choudhury has seen his fabulous strike against Newcastle last year shortlisted as one of the Premier League's goals of 2020, and the Loughborough-born midfielder also marked his first European start with a goal in a 2-1 win at AEK Athens in October.
"The good thing that I love about Hamza is that I can tell he is proud of where he's from," Dhanda told Sky Sports News.
"He's not hiding anything about who he is, and where he is from, and where his family are from. That's the good thing because people should be proud of where they are from and do what they want to do.
"I'm friends with Hamza actually, so I am even happier for him [and his success with Leicester]. I'd be happy for him even if I wasn't, but because we are friends I am so happy for him.
"I've said it before, even when we were kids I used to hate playing against him because he was that good. You'd think you were past him and he comes out of nowhere and just takes the ball off you!
"It just proves my point. Hamza is so good, he's believed in himself and look what he's doing, he's scored in the Europa League [earlier this season].
"I've believed in myself and now I've got myself into the Swansea team. It just proves my point that anyone from anywhere with hard work and belief in themselves can get anywhere."
Aldershot assistant manager Anwar Uddin was the first player of Bangladeshi origin to play professionally in this country, and, during his time with Dagenham & Redbridge, became the first British South Asian captain of a Football League side.
The West Ham academy graduate is fondly remembered by Hammers fans for skippering the club's U18 side during their famous FA Youth Cup-winning campaign in 1999.
With the latest research indicating there are more British South Asians on professional deals across England's top four divisions than ever before, Uddin insists it is the most exciting time in football for the community that he can remember.
"Hamza and Yan continue to develop into both fantastic footballers and fantastic role models," Uddin told Sky Sports News.
"Those two and the likes of Mal Benning, Otis Khan, Danny Batth, Neil Taylor, and others, are inspiring the next generation of young players from the South Asian community because they offer living, breathing proof that you can make it in the game, regardless of your background.
"There is also a really good crop of South Asian players coming through behind these guys at clubs throughout the leagues and also some really promising talent in the women's game. That's not just limited to the pitch, by the way, as there are a plethora of coaches all searching for an opportunity.
"It's brilliant to see Sky Sports take a lead in raising awareness of British South Asians across the game. It is the most exciting time for British South Asians in football that I can remember.
"Yes there are still issues we need to address but lets not forget the positive stories and role models who have succeeded despite these concerns. Life is all about balance so it's time we add some balance to this narrative as we now have some amazing people leading the way."
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