Mahir Emreli and his move to Legia Warsaw

We finally identified 23-year-old Azerbaijani Mahir Emreli from Qarabag FK as the number one choice from our initial shortlist. We also managed to bring him in as a free agent.

Emreli has scored 41 goals in 4832 minutes of play in the domestic competition in the three previous seasons combined. The data showed that he:

• regularly got himself into dangerous scoring opportunities (55% chance of scoring a goal per game)
• had a high volume of shots (averaged 3.63 shots per game)
• converted a high percentage of his shots
• created many shots for himself without prior action from a teammate
• was active in the opposition's penalty area

He was not only a player who could get himself into good shooting positions but also a good finisher. Combined with traditional scouting methods, we were confident that he was a player with excellent striking technique, who had good close control in a small space and could combine quickly.

Although he didn't have much time to adapt at Legia, he shone in the cup games.

• Europa League: 5 goals
• Champions League qualification: 2
• Domestic competition: 2
• Other competitions: 2
• Total: 11 goals in 2136 minutes

His goals helped Legia to get past Bodo/Glimt and Flora Tallinn in the Champions League qualifier. Then, after an elimination against Dinamo Zagreb, Legia faced Slavia Prague in a direct clash for the Europa League group stage and managed to advance, earning themselves an interesting financial reward.

During the winter break, Emreli was attacked by Legia's fans, then terminated his contract by mutual agreement and moved to Dinamo Zagreb. However, he still left a deep mark on Legia in the just 6-month long spell there.