Several years ago, English Premier League became the best league in the world and this title lasted quite a long time. This makes many players eager to be able to play for an English Premier League club althought in recent years it has become the second best league after the Spanish Laliga.
It’s not easy to be able to compete for an English Premier League club, let alone be able to play in a big team and also break into the first team. Apart from having to have extraordinary quality, administrative matters are also sometimes a problem for players who want to play in England.
Players from England and from the UEFA zone are not hindered by administrative problems. However, what is interesting is the regulations that apply to Non UEFA players or from other zones.
It is very rare for players from the AFC zone to be able to break into clubs in the English Premier League every season. For this season in the English Premier League, there are only 4 players from the AFC zone who are able to play for English Premier League clubs. Here’s the review.
Takumi Minamino
The 25-year-old player who plays as a left winger is a Japanese who currently plays for Liverpool. Minamino’s neat and consistent appearance with RB Salzburg in the last few seasons made Liverpool management not hesitate to buy the player in the second half of last season.
In the second half of last season, Takumi Minamino was more often being a substitute player. In this season, from statistical data Minamino has been played quite often because he is able to adapt well to the way of Jurgen Klopp’s play.
The owner of 26 games with the Japanese national team has recorded playing in 12 matches, scoring 3 goals and contributing 1 assist for the Liverpool squad this season in all competitions.
Son Heung Min
The 28-year-old who plays as a left winger is a key player of the South Korean national team. The former Hamburger SV and Bayer Leverkusen player has no doubt about his quality on the front lines. This season Son Heung Min’s name has become the mainstay of Tottenham Hotspur’s manager, Jose Mourinho.
Son’s neat performance so far has yielded results, namely 5 times the best South Korean player and 2 times best player from Tottenham Hotspur. This season, the player who has played 89 matches with the South Korean national team has always played and contributed a lot to Tottenham Hotspur.
Son’s role in the Tottenham Hotspur attack was able to make the London club at the top of the current Premier League standings. From statistical data, Son has played in 16 matches, scored 12 goals and contributed 5 assists for Tottenham Hotspur this season in all competitions.
Alireza Jahanbakhsh
The Iranian national team player who can also play as a left winger is a retainer of the English Premier League club, Brighton & Hove Albion. Alireza’s appearance with his former club AZ Alkmaar in the 2017/2018 season then made Brighton & Hove Albion’s management immediately buy the player at the start of the 2018/2019 season.
Even when he was in AZ Alkmaar’s uniform, the owner of 44 matches with the Iranian national team was able to score 21 goals in 1 season. This makes him the top scorer of the Dutch League in the 2017/2018 season.
Unfortunately, since joining Brighton & Hove Albion in early 2018/2019, Alireza has not been able to develop properly and has only become a bench warmer. This also makes the market price of this player who was born in Jirandeh City, Iran, continues to decline. From statistical data, this season Alireza has played in 8 matches, scored 2 goals and 2 assists for Brighton & Hove Albion in all competitions.
Mathew Ryan
The 28-year-old who plays as a goalkeeper is currently the main goalkeeper for Brighton & Hove Albion. The former Valencia goalkeeper was already in the Brighton & Hove Albion shirt at the start of the 2017/2018 season. Since joining Brighton & Hove Albion, Mathew Ryan has always been the first choice in the team.
Apart from being the main goalkeeper for Brighton & Hove Albion, Mathew Ryan is also the main goalkeeper for the Australian national team. The goalkeeper who was born in Plumpton City, Australia has played in 58 matches with the Australian national team and is considered his position will be difficult to replace in the next few years. With Brighton & Hove Albion, this season Mathew Ryan has played in 9 matches in the English Premier League. Apart from always being a starter, Ryan is also never replaced.
In every season in the English Premier League, there will always be players from the AFC zone who are the mainstay of the team. If you look at its history, there are some great names who have played for English Premier League clubs such as Tim Cahill, Shinji Kagawa, Park Ji Sung, Mark Schwarzer, Ashkan Dejagah, Harry Kewell, and several others.
