A Premier League club need to take a chance on Algerian sensation Ibrahim Maza, who is poised for greatness.
European football broadcaster Andy Brassell had that opinion after witnessing Maza start both of his nation’s opening World Cup Group J matches against Argentina and Jordan.
The 20-year-old attacking midfielder only signed a £10.3 million deal with Bayer Leverkusen from Hertha Berlin last summer.
Maza contributed five goals and seven assists in 44 games in all competitions, helping the Bundesliga team finish sixth and earn a spot in the Europa League.
Fans have affectionately dubbed him “Mazadona” in honour of Argentina legend Diego Maradona due to his brilliant performances.
Brassell Wax Lyrical About Maza
In an interview with talkSPORT, Brassell was asked which young players in North America have made an impression thus far and are still worth keeping an eye on.
He said: “I think Ibrahim Maza of Algeria, who came into first team at Leverkusen at the start of last season as a teenager.
“Because they were a bit of a mess after Erik ten Hag got binned off after three games, they needed someone to build around.
“You would have assumed it would be an older player, but it was this guy who turned 20 last season [in November].
“I think really, his keynote point when you really want to make a judgement of how far he can go, the way he played against Manchester City in the Champions League when Leverkusen won there last season [in the league phase of the competition].
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“He ran the game, he absolutely ran the game at 20.
“So people aren’t going to see him in the Champions League and go, ‘Wow,’ you don’t really get that effect with the Europa League.
“But look, anyone who watches Leverkusen knows this guy is a serious player, and he can direct operations for a team.
“I think he would be brilliant in the Premier League.”
