Alireza Jahanbakhsh deliberately chose Excelsior this summer despite receiving a more lucrative offer from another club. The 33-year-old Iranian was convinced by the Rotterdam side's project and his personal ties to the city.
"I also had the opportunity to sign a financially better contract elsewhere, but when I heard about the project and the ambition to achieve good performances here, I knew this was the right choice," said Jahanbakhsh. The former Feyenoord player lives in Rotterdam and calls the city his home. He is a 64-cap international and played for Iran at the recent World Cup, where he described the preparation as unfair and not ideal.
The attacker has mainly been used as a substitute for Excelsior so far. He came off the bench in the 2-2 draw against Ajax last September and has played a total of 52 minutes. Coach Marinus Dijkhuizen's team is in good form with just one defeat in their last five league matches. He was impressed by the opposition in that match. "But honestly: this was really the best Ajax I have seen in all those years, and I have played against them often." He believes Ajax may have underestimated Excelsior and that his team's high press caused problems for the Amsterdam side.
Excelsior currently sit seventh in the Eredivisie with 11 points from seven games. The team drew in Amsterdam and secured a win against Willem II prior to that. The full standings and upcoming fixtures can be found here. The next match is at home against FC Groningen, who are in eighth place. Coach Marinus Dijkhuizen's squad, including top scorer Aymen Sliti, can be viewed on the squad page. Jahanbakhsh is looking forward to continuing the season with his new club.
Further reading: voetbalprimeur.nl
