Nigerian teenager Zadok Yohanna says Brighton & Hove Albion’s reputation for developing young players was what convinced him to choose the Premier League club, despite interest from some of Europe’s biggest-spending teams.
The 18-year-old winger agreed to join Brighton from Swedish side AIK Stockholm on a five-year contract until June 2031 in a move that will be completed when the transfer window opens on June 15.
The fee was undisclosed, although British media reports valued the deal at around £21.5 million.
Brighton announced the signing after beating off competition from Newcastle United, Chelsea, RB Leipzig, Borussia Dortmund and several other clubs that tracked the Nigerian prodigy.
In his first interview with the club after signing, Yohanna pointed to the club’s track record of nurturing young talent as the deciding factor for his choice: “Development.
“The way they develop players, because I watch Premier League games a lot, so I know the teams that use young players and Brighton is one of them.
“They are really good at developing young talents.”
Yohanna’s position was echoed by his agent, Andrei Balmos, who revealed that the player turned down more lucrative offers elsewhere to secure a move to the south coast club.
“We had bigger offers,” Balmos told Greek publication England365. “From Premier League clubs and from Saudi Arabia as well.
“But we had to respect the player’s wishes. He simply wanted to join Brighton.”
