Amir Rehman has set a target of representing the Indian national team after winning the 2017-18 I-League second division with Real Kashmir FC.
The Leopards of Kashmir will be the first team from the state of Jammu & Kashmir to play in the top flight of Indian football and the midfielder feels it is "a very big step" for Kashmiri footballers.
"We are still celebrating the championship. It's a proud moment for the whole of Kashmir and a very big step for us. Mehraj (Mehrajuddin Wadoo) and Ishfaq [Ahmed] were the only prominent footballers from here. Along with them, a lot of other players were also into football but there was no platform to go ahead for them," he told Goal in an exclusive chat.
"With the formation of LoneStar [Kashmir] and then Real Kashmir, a platform was formed for the local players to play football on a higher level," Rehman continued.
"Now the local players will get an opportunity to get I-League exposure and that will hopefully help in fulfilling our dream of playing for India. So far, we have heard of only a couple of players from the state who have played for the country. If we perform well next season, then there might be more."
However, the 23-year-old is also of the opinion that the newly promoted side's players cannot expect it to be easy when it comes to fulfilling their dreams of donning the India jersey.
"It is not easy to displace the players in the current Indian national team side who are performing very well of late. Especially for us, we have a long way to go in proving ourselves on the big stage where there will be more attention on us," he reasoned.
Lamenting the lack of experience due to the dearth of competitions, Rehman explained that local players in Real Kashmir highly relied on their foreign contingent while also acknowledging the efforts of the club's head coach David Robertson.
"The state league is also not very famous. So the local players relied on the experienced foreigners and their know-how. The coach (Robertson) has done a lot of hard work with us. He has set a pattern for us to play effectively and get the results we want. This is why we have not lost a single game in the second division. The players gelled well and a lot of it was because we started our preparations well in advance - five months before the competition," he said.
Real Kashmir had to play their second division campaign at the TRC (Tourist Reception Centre) ground owing to renovation works at the larger capacity Bhakshi stadium for compliance with FIFA standards.
"We played our home games at the TRC ground. The Bhakshi stadium which is bigger is getting ready. Should it be ready (in time for the I-League), we would love to play at the Bhakshi stadium," Rehman admitted.