IRFAN Kawri is relishing the chance gain experience with the England youth set-up as part of an FA mentorship scheme.

The Bolton-born coach – who has also worked with QPR, Burton and Wigan – is determined to make the most of the opportunity.

“I’m delighted. I see this as an opportunity to progress and a chance to accelerate my development further,” he told The Bolton News.

“This isn’t just any national team. This is England – one of the most prominent in the world in terms of tradition and culture.

“Wherever you go, people are familiar with English football and to be involved with that is a huge privilege and honour.”

Kawri served as Wanderers’ head of recruitment during the 2019/20 campaign after being brought in by then-manager Keith Hill.

He admits his time at the UniBol had its ups and downs but says he learned a lot from the experience.

“It was a very turbulent time. I think it definitely made me more resilient – that comes with the territory of football,” added Kawri.

“I always reflect back on whatever role I’ve had and see what positives I can take from it, and sometimes the negatives are a good thing because you learn from it.”

Kawri previously served as first-team coach at Hereford United and recalled a memorable pre-season friendly against Turkish giants Besiktas.

In then-manager Jon Taylor’s absence, he was given the opportunity to take charge of the side and pit his wits against Slaven Bilic.

“I still remember the Besiktas game. Slaven was the manager,” he said.

“He came up to me after the game and said, ‘your lads look very fit, well coached and organised. They knew what they were doing’.

“That was very pleasing to hear. He also told me to never lose my passion on the touchline.”

The UEFA A Licence coach also spent time at Chorley and was involved in their memorable FA Cup run in the 2020/21 campaign.

The Magpies made it to the fourth round of the historic competition, overcoming the likes of Wigan, Peterborough and Derby.

The non-league outfit were eventually knocked out by Premier League side Wolves following a narrow defeat at Victory Park.

“People will always remember the cup run last season but we also finished in the play-off places before the league was ruled null and void,” added Kawri.

“What a season it was. We were going through a pandemic and it was just a horrible time, but the cup run really kept us going.

“I hardly slept in the week leading up to the Wolves game - it was so intense.”

In addition to his work with the England youth set-up, Kawri is now also coaching at Burnley’s category one Academy and serving as a coach mentor for the FA.

“It just shows that hard work, commitment and building positive relationships can help you progress further in whatever you want to do,” he said.