Our prediction for this Europa League match:
After suffering a 4-2 loss to Lazio at Stadio Olimpico, Feyenoord will be aiming to record their first group win in the 2022/2023 Europa League campaign when they face Sturm Graz at De Kuip. Feyenoord proved their worth in the Rotterdam derby at the weekend, with the team rolling over Sparta 3-0, and, no doubt, the triumph helped them regain a much-needed confidence. Mexico international Santiago Gimenez, who scored a brace in Rome, is pushing for a start, while midfielder Sebastian Szymanski should miss out with injury.
The Austrian outfit, on the other hand, kicked off their Europa League campaign with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Midtjylland, but seeing that Feyenoord have turned their De Kuip into a real fortress, home win should be considered. To make things even worse for the visiting side, midfielder Stefan Hierlander is banned for Thursday’s clash.
Highlighted Player (Alireza Jahanbakhsh):
Born in Jirandeh, Iran on August 11 1990, Alireza Jahanbakhsh is a footballer who plays for AZ Alkmaar in Holland. Before AZ, Jahanbakhsh played for NEC in the Eredivisie, but he began his youth career at Payam Alborz Qazvin. Speaking of his senior debut, he made it with Damash Tehran in the 2010/2011 season.
In 2011 he moved to fellow Iranian club Damash Gilan and it has to be noted that he scored 10 goals in 44 appearances in the league for the club. The AZ Alkmaar winger, who is used as an attacking midfielder as well, scored 21 goals in 33 appearances in the Eredivisie in the 2017/2018 season. Speaking of his international career, Alireza JahanBakhsh scored two goals for Iran on the road to Russia and he will represent his homeland at the 2018 FIFA world cup finals.
Due to his style of play, Jahanbakhsh has always been compared to legendary Iranian footballer Mehdi Mahdavikia.