They have come under much criticism by the local media, which has questioned their loyalty and devotion when playing for a country they weren’t brought up in. Added to this is the anger they face from those who consider themselves more deserving of the Pakistan colour. It is also said that the sports federations here should concentrate on grooming local talent rather than opting for the easy way out of importing it.

Still it is a fact that sportspersons such as squash player Carla Khan, boxer Haroon Khan, motor sport speedsters Adam Khan and Nur Ali, who were all born and bred abroad, consider themselves Pakistani, too. Having been lucky enough to have received better coaching and facilities abroad, they feel proud to represent the land of their forefathers.

The recently-concluded Commonwealth Games (CWG) in New Delhi, India, had British boxer Amir Khan’s 19-year-old brother Haroon boxing for Pakistan. Having been snubbed by England’s selectors, he used his trump card of being of Pakistani descent to join our contingent. England’s loss became Pakistan’s gain when he won the bronze medal in bantamweight at the CWG. He is now looking forward to representing Pakistan again in the 2012 London Olympics.

There are some six probables in this year’s Asiad-bound football squad invited to play for Pakistan by the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) in view of their experience of playing for superior foreign leagues. This is nothing new. Other football-playing countries such as Algeria, Australia, New Zealand and North Korea, too, only qualified to play in the World Cup by utilising their players who were born abroad and play abroad. It has been noticed that such players when teamed up with the local talent, also raise the team’s standard of playing.

The boys hoping to make the Pakistan football team comprise five Britons Shahnoor Qayum Abbasi, Faraz Ahmed, Atif Bashir, Adnan Farooq Ahmed, and Reis Ashraf along with Danish goalkeeper Yousuf Butt. Their brief introductions follow.

Shahnoor Qayum Abbasi, popularly known as Shan is a 17-year-old midfielder who after remaining a part of Sheffield Wednesday’s youth setup for five years was released from the club over being rather short in height. Playing for a non-league team, Ossett Town, and other Yorkshire teams, he, if selected, will lend pace and power to the national team.Normally playing as a winger for Nottinghamshire, Faraz Ahmed is now trying for the defender’s position for Pakistan. He has the honour of being a part of the Asian Dream Team selected by Barnet FC for an Asians-only football event some time back.

Having represented Pakistan several times earlier also, Atif Bashir, another defender, plays for Barry Town in the Welsh League.

Then there is midfielder Adnan Farooq Ahmed, who if picked this time, will hopefully not repeat the mistake he made when missing a penalty kick against Sri Lanka in the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Cup in 2009. It was only a year ago when he received much appreciation for being the only one to have scored against India in the event. Having spent a season with Ferencvaros in Hungary, he was recently signed on by Iran’s Football Club, Aboumoslem.Midfielder Reis Ashraf is another player hoping to make the Pakistan squad. His four years with Coventry City academy during which he scored 85 goals earned him the reputation of a goal-scoring machine. Last year’s SAFF Cup saw him scoring the first goal against Bhutan for us.

Finally, we have 20-year-old Yousuf Butt, the goalkeeper called to camp from Denmark. The boy once turned down playing for the Canadian under-19 team because he wanted to play for Pakistan. Currently he plays for Birkerod in the Danish League. He played against Woking from Pakistan International XI, too, after which he was called for trials with the English League side Barnet. He intends moving to England to play professional football in the winter window after the Asian Games.

It would not be fair to talk about all these players at the national camp and not mention those who left due to fitness problems. Yes, there were more. Of them defender Shabir Khan of Worchester City had to be dropped due to a knee injury while Amjad Iqbal fractured his leg. Ash United’s striker Aneel Azeem was also sent home due to a chest infection he caught in Lahore.

Aneel deserves a special mention here as he happens to be boxers’ Amir and Haroon Khan’s cousin. A product of Chelsea, Queen’s Park Rangers (QPR) and Reading academies, he is the son of Shahid Azeem, a former Woking chairman and one of the very first British Pakistanis to have played professional football in England during his stint with Aldershot Town back in the 1980s.

Besides these players, there are many others out there, who, even though they live abroad, are doing all they can to uplift Pakistan’s name in the world of sports.

Of course, there is Bradford City captain and Pakistan International Zeeshan or Zesh Rehman, who after spells with Brighton, Norwich, Blackpool, QPR and Fulham moved to his current club and launched a foundation to help British Asians get into football.

The Pakistan International XI team also plays as a platform for these foreign Pakistani players to prove their mettle against other big sides and in the process be recognised by the PFF. The idea for the team was conceived by a UK-based sports agency that wanted to collect talent of Pakistani descent from across Europe in one outfit. According to its creators, the team “is the alternative squad to the national Pakistan team abroad”. However, a vast majority of Pakistan International XI play in key positions for the national squad.

Then there is a very popular site for football lovers on the web, www.footballpakistan.com which happens to be the only one covering Pakistan’s football activities. Mohammed Shahnawaz, a Yorkshire man, happens to be one of the people involved with this website, which, acting as a liaison between the PFF and these players, has also helped the national body recruit from the treasure trove of talent abroad. All he really wants is to see the national team improve and for the country of his parents and grandparents to earn recognition in international football.