HE has only played 15 minutes of first-team football but Pedram Ardallany has already had a wee taste of the star treatment. "I was on the bus going back to Sighthill after a game and these fans saw me," the Partick Thistle midfielder explained yesterday. "They asked me where my BMW was."

The 18-year-old had just been introduced to the crowd at Firhill as the first Iranian to pull on a red, yellow and black shirt, for a 1-0 victory over Stirling Albion. Next season he hopes to get more games for the Jags. But, despite his Persian roots, the country he wants to play for is Scotland. "I wish," he said, hesitantly. "Hopefully."

Pedram and his father came to Glasgow at 15, fleeing his native Tehran - and a promising place as a youth player at Saipa, one of the city's major clubs. He doesn't want to say why. He doesn't need to: his status as a refugee is long confirmed.

"Refugees don't choose to leave their country," he said. "We are forced to do so for reasons beyond our control."

Now the player, known simply as "Ped" at Firhill, has, almost inevitably, been asked to kick off Scottish Refugee Week, which takes place next month to celebrate the contribution made to Scotland, its culture and sport, by those forced to make their home here.

"Football has been a great way for me to integrate into Scottish life," he said. "It is a universal language that people speak all over the world, no matter where they come from. I admire the Scots' passion for football and am grateful for the welcome they have given me."

Refugee Week promises to be bigger and better as the first refugees and asylum seekers who came to Glasgow at the turn of the millennium firmly embed themselves in the fabric of the city. There are now around 6000 refugees and 4000 asylum seekers in the country, most in the west, their numbers almost negligible compared with the waves of mass migration from Poland.

Many of the men, women and children who first arrived in Glasgow seven or eight years ago - some disorientated, more traumatised - are now giving something back.

Next month's events are part of that, designed as much for indigenous Scots as for those who have sought safety in their midst. Refugee Week will include a five-a-side tournament bringing together the best of local and refugee talents.

Pedram, after all, isn't the only rising star of football to have made his way to Scotland to flee persecution.

Rangers and Celtic both have young signings from the refugee community, from Somalia, Ivory Coast and Cameroon. None of them, however, has the powers to pull a crowd more than Oussama Rebika.

The 22-year-old, originally from Algeria but with all the patter of a Barras sports socks vendor, is the spitting image of Christiano Ronaldo.

Oussama - "Sam" to his friends - was along watching his friend Pedram do keepie-uppies for the cameras yesterday - and being teased for missing that Champions League penalty in Moscow last week. "Aye, but I have had a good season," he retorted.

Oussama and Pedram are both looking forward to Refugee Week: 70,000 people attended its events last year and more are expected this time round.

John Wilkes, chief executive of the Scottish Refugee Council, said: "For many years, refugees have been seeking sanctuary in Scotland, enriching our communities, contributing to our sports and culture, society and economy. Refugee Week Scotland is an acknowledgement of that.

"But Refugee Week is not just for refugees. It is for everyone in Scotland, an opportunity for us all to celebrate what we have in common and understand and respect our differences."

The number of people applying for asylum in the UK is falling. There are just 30 applications a week in Glasgow, mostly from Iran, Iraq and Eritrea. Overall, British numbers are down around 75% from 1999, despite a world-wide increase in displaced populations.

Mr Wilkes, speaking as police tried to identify two stowaways found dead on a cargo ship in Ayr, warned tougher border regimes were not necessarily working: people still want to come to the UK, even if they risk their lives doing so.

Partick Thistle, meanwhile, reckon Pedram - a real prospect for the team - is bringing them new fans.

"It doesn't matter where he is from. It matters that he is a real prospect on the field," said the club's Stuart MacPhee.

"He's a great lad and really impressed on his debut. He is doing well. He is making a place for himself.

"We are saying to people up in Sighthill: Come along and Support him.'"