English Premier League club Everton and Indian Football Association (IFA), the game's governing body in West Bengal, on Saturday announced a three-year tie up for grooming promising players in the state.
Tony Farrel, former England international and technical director at Everton, said they would conduct a ten-day coaches' clinic from Sunday as part of the agreement.
He said the Everton Academy, which has produced celebrated stars like Wayne Rooney and also young players of the caliber of Leon Osman, James Vaughan and Tony Hibbert, wished to replicate its own style, passion and philosophy to nurture soccer talents in the state.
Farrel said the academy believes in spotting and rearing new talents. "We want to inculcate into Bengal soccer the same philosophy that we officially call the 'Everton Way' to the game," he said.
The IFA has invited 65 coaches including a few former India internationals for the coaches' training programme, which kicks off at the Yuba Bharati Krirangan.
The present under-14 and under-16 Bengal players have also been invited to attend the clinic, to be conducted by Farrell.
After the ten-day programme, the attending coaches would be asked to follow the online coaches' education programme of 'Everton Way' before Farrel returns to the city by the year end for a follow-up course.
To ensure that the project does not get stuck for want of funds, IFA secretary Utpal Ganguly said efforts are on to rope in sponsors for the scheme.
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