Leicester youth coach in Kolkata

Undeterred by the scandal affecting his club, a leading English football coach is visiting India to see if he can discover some more football stars of the future.

Jon Rudkin is the top youth coach of Leicester City, the football club that has been shaken by the recent arrest of three leading players who have been charged with the rape of three German women at the Spanish resort of La Manga.

Paul Dickov, Frank Sinclair and Keith Gillespie spent a week in prison as a Spanish judge investigated allegations that they had molested three women after a wild night of drinking and partying in the bar of a five-star hotel.

The three men have since been released and allowed to return home to Leicester where their club is conducting a separate investigation into the incident.

Meanwhile, Rudkin, who is visiting Kolkata, says he hopes to boost links with the All-India Football Federation and, in particular, national champions East Bengal.

He is also participating in a coaching camp with the Indian national under 17 squad, which is preparing for the Asian Youth Championships.

Rudkin may be in for a culture shock during his Kolkata visit because Indian footballers are not known for going off the rails after drinking binges.

Before leaving Leicester, Rudkin said in a statement, "I am looking forward immensely to working with the Indian under 17 squad. It promises to be a great education.

"There is a great deal of interest at grassroots level in football in India and hopefully we can play a small part in helping improve the overall standard of the junior national squads.

"Later this year we will be inviting over the junior squad to take part in training camps in Leicester."