Harmeet Singh - the Indian connection at Euro U-21 Championships

A couple of days back, Harmeet Singh, a confident young Norwegian scored a last minute equalizer for his team against Israel at the UEFA European Under-21 Football Championships in Israel. The central midfielder is known for his long range shooting and showed off his technique to earn his side a valuable point against the hosts. He showed great composure to avoid slicing the half-volley and thumped into the far corner. As his name suggests, Singh was born to Indian parents in Oslo in 1990 and regularly visited India growing up. Goal.com did an excellent profile on the tenacious right footed player last year. Even though he has represented Norway over 85 times from the Under-15 level right up till he received his first senior call-up this year, he repeatedly said he would be open to playing for India. [caption id=“attachment_851333” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Harmeet Singh has been a star for Norway. Getty Images[/caption] That looks neigh on impossible now, given that he may soon make his senior debut for Norway in a competitive match and thus rule out any changing of allegiances even if he gave up his Norwegian citizenship. But there are many positives to take from his story nonetheless. He has shown that, contrary to ridiculous notions from parties I’ll leave unnamed, Indians can play football at the highest level. Given the right support, infrastructure and coaching from a young age, there is no reason why India cannot produce footballers for the European stage. Last season he left his Norwegian club side Valerenga and made a move to Dutch giant Feyenoord. However, the move from Olso to Rotterdam hasn’t been a success. He made just 7 appearances (with just 150 odd minutes of playing time) for Feyenoord, the club that produced the likes of Robin van Persie and Henrik Larsson in recent times. He needs to use these U-21 Championships to remind the audiences why he was so highly rated in the first place. Previous recipients of the “Under-21 Golden Player” award for the tournament’s most impressive performer have gone to Luis Figo in 1994, Fabio Cannavaro in 1996, Andrea Pirlo in 2002 and, more recently, Juan Mata in 2011. This tournament is a chance for talented youngsters to show they can cut it on the big stage. It may even be a chance for him to put himself in the shop window and engineer a move to a team where he will get a starting position. FIFA Futbol Mundial’s interview with Singh is telling – his confidence in himself and desire to make an impact in India comes across strongly. Norway are nowhere near being favourites for the tournament but Harmeet Singh has scored a victory for his community by making it this far anyway. His Punjabi may not be as good as his parents’, but as the Championships progress, he’ll want to let his football do the talking.