“I had offers from France and Turkey” – Alireza Jahanbakhsh

Tehran Times – ALKMAAR, Alireza Jahanbakhsh said that he has opted to play in the Eredivisie despite several offers from French and Turkish clubs.

As a fourteen year old he left home to play in Tehran. Five years later, he left Iran for the Netherlands to join NEC Nijmegen.

“From the very first days I had big dreams and I knew what I’m going to achieve and I knew that this would be a way full of difficulties,” Jahanbakhsh told Voetbal International.

It’s now two and a half years that the Iranian winger plays in the Netherlands. He stated that he had a couple of good offers before signing for NEC from Damash Gilan in 2013.

“I had offers from Turkey and France while Iran’s most popular team Persepolis was interested in signing me but I listened to my heart and joined NEC to play in Europe,” Jahanbakhsh added.

Jahanbakhsh is back to his best after a couple of injuries. He has scored two goals and provided five assists in 17 appearances for AZ Alkmaar this season so far.