Alireza Jahanbakhsh @ AZ Alkmaar | 2017 - 2018

[GolfePersique]

Real Sociedad still chasing JB

Otro de los futbolistas que la Real ha seguido a lo largo de la pasada temporada y al que ha visto en directo en varias ocasiones es Alireza Jahanbakhsh, internacional iraní que se ha salido este año en el AZ Alkmaar holandés, convirtiéndose en el ‘pichichi’ de la Eredivisie con un total de 21 goles en 33 partidos jugados.

https://www.mundodeportivo.com/futbo...ofundidad.html

[Ghermez Agha]

Sociedad is the heat option for him compared to all the links that have been made with him...and I say this as a big premier league fan dying to see some Iranians there.

[GolfePersique]

AFC magazine interview with Alireza
http://www.the-afc.com/img/image/upl...whxcm5zqtw.pdf

HAVING FINISHED THE SEASON AS THE TOP SCORER IN THE
NETHERLANDS’ EREDIVISIE, ALIREZA JAHANBAKHSH IS FAST
ESTABLISHING HIMSELF AS A STAR IN EUROPE. THE ISLAMIC
REPUBLIC OF IRAN FORWARD WAS PART OF A SIDE THAT WON
MANY PLAUDITS AT THE FIFA WORLD CUP AND HE NOW HAS
HIS EYES SET ON THE AFC ASIAN CUP TITLE.

Alireza Jahanbakhsh livesto play football. Born inQazvin to the manager ofa local bicycle factory anda stay-at-home mother,football was a shared lovefor the Jahanbakhsh family.

“I come from a really bigfootball family; my uncles, my cousins, theyreally love football,” the 24-year-old revealed.“One of the most amazing moments thatI still remember is the qualification for 1998,I was five or six years old and the dramaticqualifying of Iran to the World Cup againstAustralia.“The country was crazy; everyone wasout [in the streets]. It was crazy and peoplewere so happy. My parents, my father, whois crazy about football, and I still rememberthe people were cheering and dancing in thestreets.

”It was that moment that inspiredJahanbakhsh, the second of three children– he has an older sister and younger brother– to take up the sport. But had a schoolteacher not intervened, Jahanbakhsh mayhave been lost to football at an early age.A prodigious talent in multiple sports,Jahanbakhsh was selected for the juniornational teams in both handball and futsal.“I tried different sports,” he explained.

“Kung fu and athletics; I played handball for the national team, and I was also selected forthe country’s youth futsal team.“I think when I was 12 we had a sportteacher in the school, he told me I had to findmy way, I had to choose between football andfutsal. And at that time I would rather playfootball.

Like so many of Iran’s footballers, Jahanbakhsh learned his craft playing inthe streets with his friends from his localneighbourhood in Qazvin.“What I really remember about that timewas I was in a hurry to finish school and to goand play in the streets with the guys from theneighbourhood,” he recalled.“All that mattered for me was that small balland playing with the ball. It didn’t matter ifthat was in the afternoon in 32 or 35 degreesor even in the winter in the cold weather. Ihad a lot of fun.

“The nicest thing I remember was always playing with the older people because theywere always saying ‘he has really niceskills’ and they wanted me on their team. Itwas such a great time.”With his talent obvious for all to see, hisparents were only too happy to nurturetheir son’s ambitions.

“We weren’t from a rich family, but [myfather] was always supporting me becausehe knew that I was just following myambitions, following my dreams,” he said.But his father also wanted his eldest sonto learn the value of hard work. Over thesummer break, when Jahanbakhsh wasa young teenager, his father made himwork in the bicycle factory alongside him toengender a sense of independence in hisson – but there was a downside.

“I was working just fixing the wheels ofthe bicycles. My father told me if you wantto get some money you have to comethere and work and be independent andearn your own money. And I was workingthere fixing the wheels in the factory; itwas also a lot of fun.

“But what made me a little bit annoyedwas I had less time to play football as Ihad to work from six o’clock in the morningto five or six o’clock in the evening, andthen afterwards I had only three hours toplay football. I was so tired but still I wentto the street to play.”

Before too long Jahanbakhsh had outgrownhis hometown and at the age of just 15moved to Tehran to further his burgeoningfootball career. He made his professionaldebut at age 17 for Damash Gilan, a club thatrepresents the province of Gilan in northernIran, where his parents were born and raised.Looking for any opportunity to play,Jahanbakhsh began his career as a full-back, because the right wing position wasalready occupied by Iranian legend MehdiMahdavikia.

“The first game that I played in the firstdivision in Iran I played as a right-back,” hesaid with a chuckle.“At that time the club spent a lot of money,they invested in a lot of big players, so theytook Mehdi to the club, but he wanted to playas a right winger.

“So they were searching for someoneand the coach said, ‘ah this little kid, he haspotential to play right-back’. I was 17 and heasked me can you do that and I said ‘whynot? [I’ll play] wherever’.“

I played right-back the first game, and alsothe second game, but afterwards I told them Iwould like to play closer to goal, so I went tothe right wing.

”And he hasn’t looked back since.Given his prodigious ability it wasn’t longbefore scouts in Europe were aware of histalents – skills that were on full display at the 2012 AFC U-19 Championships, where hescored two goals as he helped Iran reach thequarter-finals.

“After the tournament I heard that I had anoffer from NEC Nijmegen,” he said. “Theygave me an offer, and at that time I had offersfrom France and Turkey.“But I knew because of their academiesand the way they work with the youth andeverything, that in Holland they could help memore,” explained Jahanbakhsh.“In Iran we have a lot of good players, [but]mostly we are individual players with goodskills. But I knew if I wanted to be a betterplayer, to become better and better everysingle day, there would be a limit in Iran. Soif you want to make it further you have to go to Europe.

”And the learning didn’t just come on thepitch, the adjustment to life in a foreigncountry at just 19 years of age was noteasy.“The first couple of weeks were reallytough because Holland is really differentfrom Iran,” said the forward, who spokeonly a little English when he arrived.“It’s a different culture, differentlanguage, different mindset. They’re oneof the freest countries in the world. I amgoing from an Islamic country to the freestcountry in the world, so it was difficult and Ihad to adapt myself to different situations,like how to communicate with the people.

“Communication with my teammateswas really difficult because I couldn’tunderstand them. When I got the offerfrom NEC I had almost two months todecide if I wanted to go or not. In that timeI had a personal [English] teacher.“But that wasn’t enough. When I wentthere I understood my teammates, but justto answer, just to say what I wanted wasreally difficult. But the club asked the localteacher to teach me how to speak. At thesame time I was learning English and alsoa little bit of Dutch. It was great and aftera couple of months I could speak with myteammates.”After two seasons with NEC Nijmegen.



during which he won the Eerste Divisie(second division) Player of the Year award inhis second year at the club, the opportunitypresented itself to take the next step in hiscareer.

“It was a big decision because I knew atthe age of 21-22 you have to make a reallygood step,” he explained.“Because I became the Player of the Year,everyone expected me to make a good step.I had different offers but I wanted to stay inHolland because I wanted to learn more, tostay in the competition, because after twoyears I knew more about the culture, aboutthe language, the people, the style of football– everything.

“I had three offers and AZ Alkmaar was thebest I had at that time, and I am very happy Imade that step.”A knee injury in his first season meanthe couldn’t have the impact he would haveliked, with just three goals in 23 matches. Inhis second season he improved his outputand hit double figures, with 10 goals.But his third season, the 2017/18campaign, saw him take his game to a wholenew level. His 21 goals were enough forhim to win the Golden Boot award, while healso finished in the top three in the leaguefor assists with 12, which he says gives himmore satisfaction than scoring goals.

“For me personally giving assists isa better feeling than scoring goals,” herevealed.That doesn’t mean he doesn’t value theGolden Boot award, however, admitting it ishis greatest achievement in his career so far– but he wants more.“To be honest until now it’s the topmoment in my career,” he said.“That means a lot to me. That saysthat hard work pays off. I dedicated thisto my family, my agent, my friends, all my teammates; all the people who helped me.“It’s been an amazing feeling, but onthe other side I am also going to forget itbecause I have a long way to go and I wantto achieve more things as an individual andas a team.”At the same time he was flourishing inEurope, so too was his career with the Irannational team. He was just 19 when he wasnamed in the 23-man squad for the 2014FIFA World Cup in Brazil and, while he onlymanaged 49 minutes off the bench acrossthe three group stage matches, just havingthat experience on the global stage was adream come true.

“The first World Cup was unbelievable,” headmitted.“It was a great experience for me at theage of 19 after six months playing in Europe.Inside of football and outside of football Ilearned a lot, and at the age of 19 whenyou go to such a tournament it’s just abouthaving the experience, learning a lot andwatching a lot, and seeing the best players inthe world.”Jahanbakhsh recently played a major rolein his country’s memorable FIFA World Cupperformance in Russia as Team Melli camewithin a goal of qualifying for the Round of 16 for the first time.After defeating Morocco in their openinggame, Iran lost 1-0 to 2010 FIFA WorldCup winners Spain in a hard-foughtcontest, before drawing 1-1 with Portugalto miss out on the knockout rounds by thenarrowest of margins after Mehdi Taremiskewed a golden chance to win it wide atthe death.The tournament may have endedin heartbreak for the forward and histeammates, but Iran won many new fansby giving two of the global giants analmighty scare as they proved themselvesa match for anyone.Jahanbakhsh is still only 24, but he haswell and truly established himself as one ofthe stars of the national team, and for himthere is no better feeling than wearing thejersey of his beloved Iran.But with his rising stature comesincreased pressure, and he knows hemust now deliver the same form he hasproduced at club level if he is to realise theone goal he is desperate to achieve – winthe AFC Asian Cup, something Iran havenot done since 1976.

“I know that after such a season theexpectation is higher for me,” he admitted.“But on the other side, I just try to do mybest whenever I am wearing the jerseyof the national team, whether it’s a WorldCup or Asian Cup or even just a normalfriendly.“But of course some competitions aremore important. So that’s why I know thevalue of these two competitions, the WorldCup and then the Asian Cup, they mean alot for our people.“One of the things I always dream of iswinning the Asian Cup with Iran. That’sone thing that hasn’t happened for a longtime now.”

[Leicester City]

Real Sociedad still chasing JB



https://www.mundodeportivo.com/futbo...ofundidad.html

Wait I thought it was already confirmed he's having a flight to England,?

[scuderia]

Wait I thought it was already confirmed he's having a flight to England,?

nothing is confirmed until Jahanbakhsh says it himself or a contract is signed. I also heard he's flying to england but these are basically still rumors.We have to wait and see.

[inarsenewetrust]

Hes flying to england for talks, doesnt mean that he will for sure sign at all.

[FF187]

what is the source for the England trip?

Hes flying to england for talks, doesnt mean that he will for sure sign at all.

Gesendet von meinem SM-G950F mit Tapatalk

[GolfePersique]

what is the source for the England trip?

Gesendet von meinem SM-G950F mit Tapatalk

It's on IFF website. He met with Taj in IFF and gave a short interview beforehis departure.

[Leicester City]

It's on IFF website. He met with Taj in IFF and gave a short interview beforehis departure.

So he's reached England already?

[GolfePersique]

http://www.soccernews.nl/news/466699...l-af-te-ronden

Dutch Website soccer news quote PFDC and Martin-Reza on JB transfer Rumours!

[Ardalan]

Naro Brighton, jone Ardalan. Football balad nistan baazi konan.

[Salar]

Guys, Conte has been officially sacked and Sarri (whom tried multiple times to sign Jahanbakhsh for Napoli) is taking over. As a die hard Chelsea fan, With Hazard and Willian likely to depart, could Alireza be on his way to Stamford bridge? He might not be ready for Chelsea yet but I wouldn't be surprised if Sarri tries to sign him!

[Medzdidz]

Chelsea would be a bad move for him if he comes to England, the expectations on him would be crazy and due to rotation he would be switched around and he needs regular playing time.
Hopefully if he comes it will be to a team like Leicester, challenging for Europe and with a smaller squad size where he will be playing regularly.

[Leicester City]

The dream is to get both players

[Iranianarsenal11]

The dream is to get both players

No one cares about Leicester