Arsenal have launched a scheme aimed at boosting the participation of South Asian communities in football. The ‘Emerging Strong, Young, South Asian Gunners’ event took place at the Gunners' Hale End academy on Saturday.
Children from London and the surrounding areas at pre-academy (between the ages of seven and eight) and foundation phase (nine to eleven-year-olds) ages were invited to come and show their talents at the same academy which has recently produced the likes of Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe.
Parents and guardians then had the chance to hear from academy staff such as Lee Herron (Head of Talent ID), Yousuf Sajjad (Head of Emerging Talent for U17 – U23), Nav Singh (Academy Sports Scientist) Steve Brown (Lead Coordinator for U8 – U16 players) and Zubair Haleem (Senior Academy Physiotherapist) about the topics of elite player pathways and future activities.
