Schoolboys live their footie dream

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Shiv Jhangiani practicing for selections

An ardent fan of European team, Manchester City and an avid footballer, tenth grader Maanas Kalra is all excited. He has achieved a feat most of his peers only dream of. Maanas, along with another Delhi schoolboy, Shiv Jhangiani, has been selected for getting trained in academy of professional football team of Europe, FC Metz.

A student of Apeejay school, Sheikh Sarai, Maanas says, “I love everything about football. It requires a tremendous degree of fitness, strength and discipline to play it well.” A complete fitness freak, Maanas also loves to dance to keep himself fit and healthy.
His funda in life — “I am hardworking and determined. If you want to achieve something, you can’t waste time.” His philosophy has yielded rich dividends!
Shiv, a student from American Embassy school, feels lucky to be one of the chosen two.
Mature and articulate, he says, “I would love to become a professional footballer. However, I have to keep up with my studies as a career in football is not that easy.” Shiv also follows cricket and atheletic events closely.
Talking about their training for the selections, Shiv recalls, “We were trained for a year by Eric Benny, ex-Indian football team manager and now a part of Edukick, that trains young footballers.”
While Maanas has lived in Delhi all his life, Shiv has been living here for three years. Maanas says, “I love the thronging crowds in multiplexes and markets. Also, most people here are warm and generous.”