In the first half of the season in the Azerbaijan Premier League, 246 players have appeared for 10 teams. But how much trust do these clubs place in young talents?
Idman.biz has reviewed the statistics of young players in the Azerbaijan Premier League and made comparisons with the Big Five leagues and the Turkish Super Lig.
This season, no player under 18 has appeared in the Azerbaijan championship. However, in other leagues where the number of teams is roughly 18-20, Turkiye stands out for providing the most opportunities to players under 18, with 8 young players given playing time. France has 7, Spain 6, while England (3), Italy (3), and Germany (2) have significantly lower numbers.
As for players under 21, there are 19 such players in the Azerbaijan Premier League, with 5 of them having played at least 10 matches. While these figures are generally better than in France's Ligue 1, the differences are not huge. The highest number of U-21 players is in Turkey (42), and the highest in Europe is in England (51). France is ahead in this regard, with 89 U21 players having appeared this season.
Among the young players who have played more than 10 matches, France (28) and England (21) lead, while Turkiye (10) and Germany (10) have lower figures.
A deeper look at the statistics of young players in the Azerbaijan Premier League reveals the following:
While no player under 18 has appeared, 3 players under 19 have featured. Murad Mammadov (Neftchi) and Nihad Ahmadzada (Sumgayit) have each played 5 matches. Sadig Mammadzada (Qarabag) guarded the goal for one full match, keeping a clean sheet.
Among the 21-and-under players, Shamakhi and Sumgayit have the most representatives, each with 4 young players. However, Shamakhi has had the most active young players, with 3 out of 5 players having participated in at least 10 matches. Other teams like Sabail, Kapaz, Qarabag, Neftchi, Sabah, and Turan Tovuz have provided playing time to fewer young talents.
Rufat Abbasov (Shamakhi) has played every minute of the team's 18 matches this season, totaling 1620 minutes, the most among young players. Nariman Akhundzada (Qarabag) has played 1009 minutes over 14 matches, starting in 12.
In terms of appearances, the top 5 players with the most starts include Khayal Aliyev (Sabah), Gurban Safarov (Shamakhi), and Edgar Adilkhanov (Shamakhi).
Nariman Akhundzada (Qarabag) is the most active forward, having taken 21 shots in 14 games, scoring 4 goals and providing 4 assists. Rufat Abbasov (Shamakhi) ranks second in shots (6), followed by Khayal Aliyev (Sabah) with 5.
In the list of young top scorers, Nariman Akhundzada is followed closely by Edqar Adilxanov (Shamakhi) with 2 goals. Five other players have scored 1 goal each.
As for assists, Nariman Akhundzada leads with 4, followed by Rufat Abbasov (Shamakhi) with 2. Three other players have 1 assist each.
Akhundzada is also the standout dribbler, with 33 successful dribbles, followed by Abbasov (Shamakhi) with 17, and Khayal Aliyev (Sabah) and Aykhan Suleymanli (Sumgayit) each with 13 successful dribbles.
Vugar Mammadov
Idman.biz
