Merit the criterion: Pradhyum

Football clubs all over the world are routinely attacked for not giving local players a chance to shine on the national stage.

Bengaluru FC, which won the I-League title on Monday, have a solid core and not one player from that have their roots from Karnataka, let alone Bangalore.

Defending BFC’s composition of players, assistant coach, Pradhyum Reddy – who was integral in identifying the players that was bought by the club, said that the club doesn’t run a quota system and merit was the sole criterion.

He also mentioned that teams in the past have badly suffered because of the need to feature local players in the starting XI.

The Scottish-born Pradhyum, who returned to India after a stint in the US, also revealed that the club offered a trial to current Karnataka skipper Xavier Vijaykumar but he did not turn up for the trials.

But Pradhyum did say that there was promise in the Under-19 team. “The under-19 team is full of local players. Next season, our idea is to induct some of the good players into the first team.”

Speaking of the current team that won the title, he attributed the team’s success to being a very young outfit. “We are a very young team, a very young club and that’s one of the reasons why we have managed to connect with everyone so well.”

On why he made the decision to join BFC, Pradhyum said: “When they gave me the call and asked me whether I would be interested to come on board, it was an opportunity that I couldn’t resist.

“It was a dream job to me. An equivalent of going to England to work in a Championship club but only in Bangalore. I feel that I have learnt more in the last years than in the previous 14 years of my career,” he signed off.