KOCHI: At a time when football fans are excited by Kerala’s progress to the semifinal of Santosh Trophy, the Royal Netherlands Football Association (KNVB) is turning its radar on the state’s playing fields.Keen to tap into local talent, the KNVB took its first step towards setting up a ‘Grassroots Football Academy’ in Kerala when its representative inspected the High Altitude Training Centre in Munnar on Tuesday. KNVB World Coaches Programme international instructor Nico Labohm followed it up with a visit to the Government High School Ground, Panampilly Nagar and the Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium here on Wednesday.As per the preliminary talks held between the KNVB and the Kerala Football Association, the Dutch association will provide the technical expertise to run a world class academy, with the onus on the state to provide them with the necessary infrastructure, KFA general secretary Anil Kumar P told Express.“The Netherlands Football Association has shown serious interest in setting up a grassroots academy in Kerala. They will provide us with expert coaches as part of their international coaching programme. It will be a long-term project.The Dutch association work towards building up a strong pool of talent to strengthen India’s case for the 2017 FIFA under-17 World Cup,” Anil said.Labohm is scheduled to soon send a report to the KNVB of the ground reality in Kerala. He will then get back with the Dutch body’s suggestions. Through its World Coaches Programme, the KNVB had launched a similar initiative last year at Bangalore, in partnership with Ozone Globo Sports. Raghunandan Subramanian of Ozone and Prashant Agarwal, chief executive officer of the Kshatriya Sports Management, accompanied Labohm and Anil on the Munnar visit.“The Netherlands Football Association is clearly interested. They are pleased with the enthusiasm shown by the KFA to put something world class in place. We will get back to the KFA, after consultations with the KNVB, by Monday,” Agarwal told Express.The grassroots programme follows the All India Football Federation’s strategic partnership with the KNVB to develop the game in the country over the next decade.
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