Despite a combined population of nearly 1.6 billion people and a deeply ingrained passion for football, there are no players from India or Thailand in England’s Premier League, but Manchester United are hoping that may soon change.

The club and sponsor Apollo Tyres invited six young players from India, Nepal, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates, from an original pool of 15,000, to Old Trafford last week to work on their skills with United coaches as part of the ‘United We Play’ initiative to empower footballers from untapped communities.

“I’m a big believer that the most important part of a talent development is opportunity,” Nick Cox, United’s director of academy, said. “I hope that this programme is inspiring young people, I think that’s really important, that people realise that what they’re trying to achieve is possible and is real.”

Former United player Louis Saha kicked off the fourth edition of the programme a year ago in Kolkata, India. Former United captain Gary Neville oversaw the grand finale of the competition, from which the half-dozen players were chosen, in Chandigarh in October.

“This is a brilliant opportunity for these young kids to experience what it takes to get to the top,” said ex-defender John O’Shea, who helped put the young players through their paces in torrential rain.