HE is set to do battle with the footballing superpowers of Barcelona, Lyon and Marseille.

It’s an honour most professional players will never get to experience.

But hot-shot Hayden Lindley has been given the chance to do just that – before he has even turned eight.

The Honley schoolboy, who plays for Honley Juniors under-sevens, is on the books of Premiership club Blackburn Rovers.

And, having impressed with their elite under-sevens pre-academy team, the Honley Infants School pupil is now set to jet off to the south of France for a international tournament.

Hayden, of Sheardale, Honley, is one of nine youngsters selected to represent Blackburn in the five-a-side Challenge Marcel Aubour St Tropez cup in April.

Blackburn have won the competition twice in a row and this year will compete against the likes of Monaco and Montpellier as well as Barcelona, Lyon and Marseille.

Dad David, 39, said: “It’s a big deal. Hayden’s all about the football.

“When he gets home from school he’s either playing a football game on the PlayStation or having a kick about on the drive. It’s just football, football, football.”

Hayden, who plays on the right wing or at right back, was attracting interest from scouts from the age of five.

He joined the Blackburn Rovers pre-academy squad in October 2008 and had to reject advances from Leeds United because the training times clashed.

He has since also joined the Manchester City set-up and trains with the club at a site in Bradford.

David, a self-employed electrician, said: “He started playing with his older brother Ben and I run the under-12s at Honley so we got him involved with that.

“You could tell he was a good player, just because of the little skills he had.”

An integral part of the successful under-sevens team at Honley, Hayden scored nine goals in one game earlier this season.

As well as Blackburn and City, he takes after his dad’s affinity to Liverpool and idolises Steven Gerrard.

David said his son’s dream would be to make it as a professional footballer.

But he added: “As long as he’s enjoying it, that’s the main thing.”