Brighton and Hove Albion have once again broken their transfer record by acquiring the services of Alireza Jahanbakhsh from Dutch side AZ.
The 24-year-old Iranian winger is their latest Eredivisie recruit following the acquisitions of Davy Pröpper and Jürgen Locadia.
Jahanbakhsh arrives with the Seagulls aiming to establish themselves as Premier League mainstays; last season, their first in the division, Chris Hughton’s men finished in 15th albeit seven points above the relegation zone.
His signing is seen in some quarters as a coup, given the calibre of clubs interested, and for good reason.
Jahanbakhsh ended last season as the leading marksman in the Dutch top division, which in turns come with extra scrutiny, but that doesn’t bother him as he’s aiming to hit the ground running.
And he needs to if he’s to make a success of this latest phase of his career. So what are the chances he’ll do so?
Jahanbakhsh’s career so far
Club appearances: 237
Key stat: The first Asian player to become top scorer in a major European league.
Born and raised in the Iranian city of Jirandeh his footballing journey would begin at Damash Tehran before returning to his boyhood club Damash Gilan where his impressive displays caught the attention of Dutch outfit NEC who signed him in 2013.
He’d enjoy a modest first season in Nijmegen, registering five goals across 27 league outings, but was enough to see him being named the second greatest talent in the league behind Memphis Depay.
NEC, though, would be relegated. Jahanbakhsh remained faithful but after one season in the Dutch second division he’d relocate to AZ where his development grew further.
Alireza Jahanbakhsh was directly involved in more goals (33) than any other player in the 2017/18 Eredivisie season.
• 21 goals
• 12 assistsBrighton are the transfer kings.
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Each passing season saw the Iranian international get stronger, faster and better culminating in what turned out to be his final season – ending as the league’s top scorer on 21 goals – but one to remember.
Jahanbakhsh, who admirably represented Iran at this summer’s World Cup, in the process made history, the dynamic winger became the first Asian player to top score in a major European league and was subsequently linked with a number of clubs including Napoli.
Jahanbakhsh’s style of play
Jahanbakhsh fits the profile of a contemporary-cum-classical winger.
His greatest strength is dribbling, having averaged 3.4 per Eredivisie game last season, by utilising his natural speed – the cornerstone behind Jahanbakhsh’s success – he’s been able to frequently get into one-on-one situations and create goalscoring opportunities (12 goals created from 78 chances produced in his final AZ league campaign).
Jahanbakhsh’s spatial awareness and passing, averaging 42.6 per game last season, were equally displayed for all to see last term. A year which predominantly saw Jahanbakhsh being deployed out wide; as a wide-forward on the right (comfortable with both feet but strongest on his right), with licence to cut inside and showcase his playmaking and attacking attributes.
A critique once upon a time was a lack of goals. He’s addressed that bagging 21 goals across 33 outings; at AZ the Iranian forward was often afforded a free role, which he greatly took advantage of, particularly shooting from distance.
Where would he fit in at Brighton?
To say Jahanbakhsh is heading into his first season in English football on the crest of a wave is an understatement.
As mentioned the 24-year-old is best playing from out wide. It helps that new manager Chris Hughton loves winger friendly systems having used 4-4-2 in 66% of his 170 outings as Seagulls boss.
Of course, at the beginning, there will be competition. Anthony Knockaert spent much of last season in the position Jahanbakhsh made his own and there’s also the likes of José Izquierdo, Jiri Skalak and Jamie Murphy around.
The spectre of being Eredivisie top dog
Jahanbakhsh, interestingly, becomes the seventh Eredivisie top scorer who joined a Premier League club the season after collecting their golden boot.
He follows in the esteemed footsteps of Vincent Janssen, Memphis Depay, Wilfried Bony, Luis Suarez, Afonso Alves and Mateja Kežman.
Of the sextet only Bony managed double figures in his inaugural Premier League campaign, but Suarez made the most lasting impact, and it shouldn’t be forgotten Liverpool signed him from Ajax halfway through 2010/11.
The others, one reason or another, were disappointments. Kežman never got going, Alves simply froze whilst it seemed either a premature or wrong move regarding Memphis and Janssen.
Memphis, 24, is starting to rebuild his career at Lyon (which is proving to be a successful decision) and for now Janssen remains a Spurs player.
Jahanbakhsh would be aware of those before him, but said fates shouldn’t be used to determine his, if Brighton play it right they will not only get the best out of him but go some way to achieving their goals.
The post Alireza Jahanbakhsh’s playing style explained – will Brighton’s record signing be a Suarez or an Alves? appeared first on Squawka News.
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