Former Australian Striker Ryan Williams Joins Indian Football Team Training Camp In Bengaluru Ahead Of AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers

AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers: Days after getting the Indian citizenship, former Australian forward Ryan Williams has joined the Blue Tigers' training camp in Bengaluru, on Sunday, November 9.

It could mark a new era in the Indian Football Team after the inclusion of Ryan Williams. In recent times, the Indian Football Team has displayed a poor performance. Following this, last week, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) decided to rope in two foreign players, Ryan Williams and Abneet Bharti.

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Ryan Williams Joins Blue Tigers Training Session In Bengaluru

Earlier on November 9, the AIFF released a statement on their official social media handle and confirmed that Williams and Jay Gupta have joined the national training camp in Bengaluru.

"Forward Ryan Williams, and defender Jay Gupta have joined the senior men's national team camp in Bengaluru," AIFF wrote on X.

To get Indian citizenship, Williams had to go through a thorough process. Like, the Bengaluru FC striker had to stay in India for 12 months before filing the documentation. Now, Ryan Williams, who was born in Perth, holds an Indian passport.

It was legendary striker Sunil Chhetri who handed over the Indian passport to Ryan Williams at the Bengaluru FC training facility.

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Ryan Williams Becomes Second Overseas Player To Play For Indian Football Team

This is the second time that Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) have been eligible to represent the Blue Tigers at the international stage. Earlier, it was Japan-born Izumi Arata who took Indian citizenship to play for the national football team in 2012. Arata played nine matches for India from 2013 to 2014.

Under Khalid Jamil's coaching, the Blue Tigers will play against Bangladesh in the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers in Dhaka on November 18.

In the probable squad for the Bangladesh clash, Khalid Jamil has included Mohammed Sanan, who was called up to the U23 squad earlier this week, and will join the senior team instead. Meanwhile, the players of Mohun Bagan Super Giant are yet to be released by the Kolkata-based club.