Hakon Evjen was a target for Pep Guardiola’s Premier League champions Manchester City but he has instead joined Eredivisie outfit AZ Alkmaar.
Norway starlet Hakon Evjen has turned down a move to Manchester City in order to continue his rapid development on the fertile breeding ground of the Eredivisie with AZ Alkmaar, the player’s agent has told VG.
It is becoming something of a golden generation for the poor relations of Scandinavian football with the likes of Martin Odegaard, Sander Berge, Erling Braut Haaland and Josh King establishing themselves in the European game.
And Evjen has all the talent to follow in their footsteps. A gifted right winger, the 19-year-old scored at a remarkable rate for Bodo/Glint last season with ten goals in 20 games – up from one in 17 the previous campaign.
His staggering displays caught the eye of a Manchester City side who are always scouring the globe for uncut diamonds but his agent, Morten Wivestad, has explained that Evjen had no interest in joining the Premier League champions only to be farmed out to one of their sister clubs.
“There has been great interest in Hakon from various clubs, and we have always been looking for the right club and the right time. City wanted him, but he did not want to join,” said Wivestad after Evjen agreed a four-and-a-half year deal with AZ Alkmaar instead.
“We felt that we would not have had control over where he would go on loan, and that is why we believe that AZ is a much safer and more correct choice.
“They had a clear ambition for him to become a City player. They thought he had potential for it, but it wouldn’t be on the A team now.”
VG adds that AZ have paid around £2.25 million for the teenager, a fee that makes him the biggest export in Bodo/Glint’s history. And, who knows, if he continues to star in Holland, what is to stop Manchester City making a move again when he’s old enough to fight for an immediate place in Pep Guardiola’s squad?
As fellow Norwegian Odegaard will no doubt attest, after superb loan spells at Heerenveen and Vitesse Arnhem, there are worse places than the Eredivisie for a young forward to develop their talents.
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