Bengaluru: Panama coach Thomas Christiansen was pleasantly surprised to see Ryan Williams in the hotel lobby and stopped to chat for a while, before his pre-match media interaction on Thursday.The two have known each other from their time in England. Christiansen coached Leeds United about a decade ago, while Williams spent the first decade of his professional career in the UK.“I have seen that the (India) team has improved a lot in the last (few) years. It’s also because of the domestic league (ISL), with players from abroad who raise the level. I just met Ryan Williams downstairs. He is one of the players (who stood out) when we analysed India. He is a player who, from my point of view, showed has a good level,” said Christiansen, who etched his name into Panamanian football folklore by leading the country to their second FIFA World Cup.There’s no denying Williams has strengthened India since surrendering his Australian citizenship last year to take up an Indian passport. The Bengaluru FC forward scored on debut and picked up an injury in his next game.Coach Khalid Jamil knows how much firepower Williams adds to the team upfront. With goalkeeper Som Kumar – playing in Slovenia – being included for the three friendlies, the India coach is now on the lookout for foreign-based players who can add a new dimension to the team.“We are not closing the doors to anyone, but only players who have the quality to represent the national team will be considered,” said Jamil. “We have Som Kumar, who we selected after seeing his recent match videos and then had a good look at him during the training camp. He is doing well. I keep analysing videos of foreign-based players (with Indian passports).”Jamil said he is monitoring the progress of at least three-four players based abroad.“If you are good, you will be considered. Rather than just (short) clips, we ask for recent match videos, where a player can be judged properly. We check their records too. There are players from Europe who are being monitored,” said Jamil.Som, 21, first moved to NK Radomlje, a top division club in Slovenia, two years ago, discarding his four-year contract with Kerala Blasters FC. The young goalkeeper then decided to make another move, this time to the second division of Slovenia. A loan deal was agreed with ND Slovan, and after six months, the club decided to make the move permanent.
