Zesh Rehman is heading to Thailand for the next stage in his career after helping to pave the way for British Asian players to make a mark in the sport. As Chris Bridger reports, he’s an important community figure too.
Transfer news from League Two isn’t usually something that captures my imagination; the news that Wycombe have signed QPR’s sixth choice winger on loan for a month really doesn’t work wonders for literary stimulation. But upon seeing that Zesh Rehman, the former Bradford City captain, had left to ply his trade in the Thai Premier League at Muangthong United, I felt obliged to write a little about how much of a loss I think Rehman’s departure is, not only to the British game, but to the youth of Bradford.
It would be easy to forget about Rehman and his (limited) influence on the British game itself. Picked up by Fulham’s academy at the tender age of 12, he made his Premier League debut at Anfield and in doing so became the first British Asian player to play in the Premier League; quite some achievement I think you will agree.
Unfortunately this was arguably as good as it got for Rehman. He was farmed out for first team experience to Brighton & Hove Albion and Norwich City before he got snapped up by QPR at the beginning of the 2006-2007 season. His 27 appearances in all competitions in that season proved to be his most successful campaign so far.
Once again he fell out of favour at the end of the 2008-09 season and left for Bradford, via Blackpool (three substitute appearances in a six month loan spell). Rehman found his feet at Bradford and, by playing for them, became the first British Asian player to play in all four of England’s top divisions.
At the start of the 2009-10 season he was named Bradford’s captain, and won the PFA Player in the Community Award in March 2010 for his work as club captain, encouraging the local community to engage with club at all levels. Then, in May, Rehman became the first British Asian (can you see the theme here?) to set up his own football foundation - aptly named the Zesh Rehman Foundation- which, according to its website, is a foundation that aims to “use football as the catalyst for education, training, employment and community development.”
Now, it is for this reason that I see Zesh’s departure from British soil as a blow not only for British youth, but for footballers’ reputations in England. It is no secret that there has been alot of acrimony surrounding a certain few professional footballers recently (I’ll let you decide who I’m referring to) and, at a time when the professional footballer’s reputation couldn’t really sink any lower, it is people like Zesh Rehman that we need playing in England week in, week out, if these reputations are going to be overturned.
True, it is nothing new to start a foundation; Craig Bellamy has done it, Didier Drogba has done it as well - both players that have had well publicised issues on and off the field in the past, but both players that have earned international recognition for their charity and community work (Drogba was recently listed in The Times as being in the top 100 inspirational people in the world). Players that are willing to give something back aren’t hard to come by in the modern game but it is the players, like Rehman, that actively seek to do so that deserve full credit.
I’m sure Rehman will continue have representatives working on his behalf, but what does this mean for the future of the foundation? Half the excitement for the kids that are signing up to the foundations schemes is the fact that they will meet a professional footballer. But when they turn up and instead meet Rehman’s agent or one of his colleagues, this may serve to detract from the promise of the scheme.
As part of the ‘Football League Trust’ each team in the Football League is obliged to have community schemes running, and I’ve been lucky enough to witness alot of the brilliant work that these teams do in the community (West Bromwich Albion in particular have a fantastic scheme in place). But this isn’t quite the same as having a famous individual running the scheme, an individual that the kids looking to go on these schemes can really relate to.
Now that Rehman has left England, you wonder how long it will be before co-ordinating things from halfway across the world becomes that little bit too difficult. In “Providing opportunities for those who would otherwise not get the chance to engage in football or sport”, the Zesh Rehman Foundation is doing something amazing, something that is much needed in our modern day society. It provides stability for the kids that are enrolled on the scheme, it keeps them off the streets, it gives them a purpose.
Whichever one of the reasons you feel is the most important, it is a big blow that Rehman won’t be able to actively continue his own community work in Britain, and I for one feel that Rehman should be given as much support as he needs by the FA to continue his work in the community.
Football needs its ‘good samaritans’ and, in Rehman, English football has a man that is genuinely passionate about giving youngsters the opportunities they deserve. Call me a traditionalist, but I believe that football is more than just a game - it can be used as a social tool, a vehicle for the community. Luckily for the game of football, people like Zesh Rehman do too.
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Tags: Bradford FC, Community, League Two, Pakistan, Thai Premier League, Zesh Rehman
Interesting article - but why has he chosen Thailand? Why not another League Two or Conference club that would allow him to still work closely with his foundation? With all due respect to the Thai league, which I’m sure is crying out for players of Rehman’s calibra, English football needs all the help it can get in terms of unlocking the potential of our young Asian players. You just hope that Rehman moving so far away doesn’t cause the foundation’s good work to lose vital momentum.
Couldn’t agree more, a cynic might suggest that money has something to do with it, in an interview he said Muangthong had offered him a ‘great deal’ which tends to suggest that finance may have had something to do with it, but i’m certainly not qualified to even begin to suggest that that is part of the reason… It is a shame, and I just hope he can continue his good work from overseas, if his foundation can help to give just one kid a better life then it has done it’s job. I just hope that his foundation can be the driving force behind other professionals following his lead. Good luck to him!
Agree that it is great but its the first time i have heard of his foundation so its not a much of a big loss as you may be stating imo. If it was a hugely successful foundation which was known by all then I could completely see your point and as much as I think his foundation sounds brilliant, I don’t think its as bigger loss as you stated. It will probably continue with or without Rehman is the country. I am sure he won’t want something like that to fade away.
Chris, if you’d have seen Zesh play last season he was worse than non league, regularly booed off for being absolutely woeful and rumours of contractual obligations to play him due to McCall blowing the budget year before only to fail.
Interesting in his last game he stripped Zesh of the captaincy in an apparent show of defiance before falling on his sword.
He was one of the worst centre halves I’ve seen at VP and primarily is paid to be a professional footballer, we should remember that rather than hiding behind his off the field stuff which is good but shouldn’t detract from the day job.