Know your PIO/OCI Footballer: Danny Batth

Batth currently plays for Blackburn Rovers in the English Championship

Following the recent press conference of AIFF President Kalyan Chaubey, it has come to public view that the All India Football Federation is actively trying to integrate Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) players into the national team. This has not been possible so far, as per Indian sports laws.

One player who has been named as a contender to play for the Indian football team is — Danny Batth. In this article, we will understand the player’s roots, have a look at his career, and see if he is actually eligible to play for the Indian football team.

Also Read: Know your PIO/OCI Footballer: Yan Dhanda

Danny Batth’s roots…

Daniel Tanveer Batth, better known as Danny Batth, is a professional footballer who was born in Brierley Hill, England, on 21st September 1990. He was brought up in the West Midlands and started his football journey with Wolverhampton Wanderers.

In an interview with KhelNow in 2017, Batth had said that his father was born in Punjab, India and had moved to England when he was young. His mother, on the other hand, is a British citizen, and the player is also a citizen of England and holds an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card.

Danny Batth has visited India multiple times and has even claimed that his family had land and a house in Punjab as of 2017. In terms of football, Danny is a central defender and has been a professional since 2009.

Danny Batth’s club career so far

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Having started his career at the Wolverhampton Wanderers academy and playing for their youth side, Danny made the move to Colchester United on loan in the 2009-10 season. He would then play for Sheffield United and Sheffield Wednesday on consecutive loan moves until May 2012.

Danny returned to the Wolves ahead of the 2012-13 season and played for the club for six seasons, also becoming the captain and helping them get promoted to the English Championship in 2014 after they were relegated the previous season.

Following his stint with Wolves, Batth spent a season with Middlesbrough before moving to Stoke City in 2018 and staying with them for four seasons. Stints with Norwich City and Sunderland followed before Danny eventually moved to Blackburn Rovers in 2024. He currently plays for the Blue and Whites and made 41 appearances for the club last season.

Overall, the central defender has close to 500 appearances in club football, in which he has also scored 29 goals. Having spent most of his career in the English Championship, Batth captained Wolves to win the league in 2017-18 and get promoted to the Premier League. However, he never played in England’s top division.

Also Read: Know your PIO/OCI Footballer: Manprit Sarkaria

Has he played for England?

Danny Batth has not played for the England national football team. He has not represented the Three Lions at youth level as well.

Can Danny play for the Indian football team?

Danny’s father was born in India and hence the footballer is of Indian descent. To add to this, he has not represented the England football team at any level. The FIFA eligibility rule dictates that a player can only represent one national team at the senior level and hence the defender is eligible to play for the Blue Tigers.

While Danny Batth is a British citizen, he does hold an OCI card. He had also shown his interest to play for the Indian national team previously. However, India’s laws currently don’t not allow OCI players to play for the national team unless the player denounces their dual nationality.

While talks are going on actively to allow OCI players to represent the Indian football team, there are no updates on the same currently. If and when the law changes, Danny Batth should be eligible for selection once FIFA approves it.

What does Danny Batth bring to the table?

The veteran defender has years of experience under his belt playing in the English Championship. Currently, Sandesh Jhingan, Rahul Bheke, Anwar Ali, Chinglensana Singh, and Mehtab Singh are the five players vying for the two centre-back positions in the Indian national football team.

Danny Batth’s addition will be a certain step-up as his quality of tackles, interceptions, and one-on-one defending are all better than the current crop of defenders. The defender is also good in short passing and with headers.

However, Danny Batth will turn 35 years old in September and hence he could be past his prime. If he is allowed to represent the Blue Tigers, his addition will be nothing more than a temporary fix.

Nevertheless, the Blackburn defender can certainly help the likes of Anwar and Mehtab in polishing their skills from his own experience.

Danny Batth: Profile

• Name: Daniel Tanveer Batth
• Place of Birth: Brierley Hill, England
• Current Citizenship: English
• Height: 1.91m (6ft 3in)
• Position: Centre-back
• Preferred Foot: Right-footed player
• Current Club: Blackburn Rovers (English Championship)
• Contract Expires: 30th June 2025

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