FINS ARE LOOKING UP FOR FORMER GUNNERS KID KAM

GLEN KAMARA is proof that the Premier League academy system can build good careers – even if players have to go elsewhere to succeed.

The 22-year-old has been a revelation in Scotland at Dundee this term after being released by Arsenal last summer following an unusual path into professional football.

The midfielder was born in Finland, moved to England aged 12, was spotted by Southend and then eventually moved to Arsenal aged 16.

Kamara (above) grew up with the likes of Alex Iwobi, Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Chuba Akpom but only got one first-team chance, a League Cup defeat at Sheffield Wednesday in October 2015.

That was that as far as Arsenal was concerned but the grounding, football education and graduation served him well for the future.

Kamara went out on loan to Colchester and Southend before going to Dundee where he has blossomed and is now very much on the up.

The midfielder said: “Being at an academy at a top club, I gained so much knowledge as a footballer. The passing, movement, it’s a wonderful education.

“There’s loads of boys who started at an academy and didn’t make it at that club, but have done well elsewhere and it can be a stepping stone. You have to go down to get back up.

“I would never say there’s anything massively wrong with the academy system. I wish the boys would get more of a chance – even if the first time doesn’t go well – but it can really help your career in the long run.

“I had good coaches, Steve Gatting, Steve Bould (below) and Neil Banfield, and they gave me a good grounding. “I would still like to go as high as possible.”

Kamara has won his first full cap for Finland and noticed the difference in football upbringings from the country of his birth to being in England.

He added: “It’s a different experience. I was still young, learning the trade in Finland and then England.

“English boys, the academy boys, get criticised for getting everything so easy.

“I did see that a little bit after joining the academy, everything is done whereas when I was abroad it was different.

“It is what it is, I guess. You learn your trade and move on from there. I learned quite a bit from Finland, but I learned so much more at Arsenal.”