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Premier league team Liverpool FC and Pune-based DSK Developers have teamed up to set up the first of its kind international club residential football academy in India at the DSK international campus at Loni near the city.
Inaugurated today by Liverpool FC legend and former player Jamie Carragher, the Liverpool FC International Football Academy–DSK Shivajians will train 64 budding football players in the under-17 and under-19 age groups to begin with.
Their selection followed a three-month-long nationwide scouting camp held in six cities. Over 2,500 participants underwent a rigorous selection process under the supervision of Liverpool FC coaches Ray Curtis and Michael Rice.
Of the first batch of 64, DSK has provided scholarships to 34 on the basis of their economic status, while the rest will pay approximately Rs 4.5 lakh per year for the duration of their stay, Shirish Kulkarni, President, Liverpool FC International Football Academy–DSK Shivajians, said. After two years, the plan is to train children in the younger age-groups as well, he added.
Spread over 20 acres of land, the new academy is built to international standards and includes a purpose-built residential complex with 840 air-conditioned and fully furnished single rooms. It has two full-size pitches, one 4G synthetic turf and one natural grass, and an outdoor swimming pool for exclusive use along with practice areas, lecture theatre, classrooms, changing rooms, a gym, canteen, convenience store, entertainment and requisite medical facilities.
“I was at Liverpool’s Academy for six years before I went on to playing in the first team for 17 years. I know first-hand how important it is to have the right development as a young player to fulfil your potential,” said Jamie Carragher.
The players, who will make up the U-17s and U-19s squads, will follow Liverpool’s philosophies both on and off the pitch. “The academy back in Liverpool is close to my heart so it’s great to be here today and be part of the opening of India’s first international residential football academy,” he added.
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