Zesh Rehman created history after becoming the first British-Pakistani to play in the Premier League but wants to be remembered for inspiring others to do the same.

The 37-year-old played 30 times for Fulham between 2004 and 2006 and remains the only player from that background to play at the highest level of English football.

It is an achievement that no one will ever be able to take away from him, but he says it will mean nothing unless it helps others from similar backgrounds believe they could have a career in professional football.

Rehman, who is closing in on 500 career games and is currently player-manager of Southern FC in Hong Kong, told the PA news agency: “That is something that I will always be proud of, but for me it would be even better if that achievement is used in some way to make a difference and inspire people to follow and hopefully increase numbers across the board.

“There is an upward curve and there is a different journey of those guys in there. There are a lot of role models there to look up to, there is a lot of belief that it can be done and hopefully people can follow suit and have a long coaching career, something like Chris Hughton has done.”

Rehman’s desire to make a difference has seen him work alongside Danny Batth, Malvind Benning, Otis Khan, Easah Suliman and Neil Taylor on a Professional Footballers’ Association programme, headed up by his brother Riz Rehman, designed to help players from all backgrounds with their journey in football.

“Over the years I have been bombarded with letters and emails and requests from parents and students and players.

“This initiative helps them to get first-hand insight, mentoring on issues they are likely to face in the system whether they are an academy player, a scholar or first-team player.

“The aim is to make their journey a little bit easier and to give back. It is nice to know you can make a small difference but potentially change someone’s life.”