Enes Ünal is a 27-year-old striker who has played in several clubs all over Europe. He signed for Bournemouth on the 1st of February on a six-month loan deal from Getafe.
The Turkish striker joined Getafe in the summer of 2020 from Villarreal, the club he joined in May 2017. Enes Ünal has spent five of the eleven seasons he’s played professionally as a footballer on loan to different clubs. His late loan deal to Bournemouth proved so successful that Bournemouth chose to retain his services.
Bournemouth Retain Enes Ünal After Loan Spell
He's OÜRS 🇹🇷
After a successful loan spell, we can confirm Enes Ünal has signed a four-year contract at #afcb ❤️ pic.twitter.com/ci6YoEfHN3
— AFC Bournemouth 🍒 (@afcbournemouth) May 29, 2024
Bournemouth has triggered the €16 million buy option clause attached to Enes Ünal’s loan deal to make the deal permanent. Enes Ünal has signed a four-year contract to continue with Andoni Iraola’s side.
The then 26-year-old at the point of the loan deal, had caught the attention of Bournemouth due to the 34 goals he scored in 104 games for Spanish side Getafe. He had also managed to score 16 and 15 goals respectively in his last two seasons in Spain.
In 17 appearances for the club in the six months of his loan, which include 16 in the league and one in the FA Cup, Ünal managed two goals and two assists.
Enes Ünal’s Impact At Bournemouth
Enes Ünal’s performance at Bournemouth seems to have impressed the hierarchy. His performance goes beyond just goal-scoring. In his 16 Premier League appearances for the club, Enes Ünal made 14 of them from the bench, playing an average of 23 minutes per game as second fiddle to the club’s highest goal scorer and star striker, Dominic Solanke.
In these 16 appearances, he’s proven to be useful in defending also, assisting when the team is on the back foot with six tackles, five blocked shots, six clearances, and one interception. He also made 72 passes to his teammates, averaging 4.5 passes a game, created two big chances, and made three crosses.
Although he missed six big chances which would’ve helped improve his goal tally, he’s proved to be a threat in front of goal with 23 shots taken, 11 of them on target, and a shooting accuracy of 48%.
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What’s In The Future For Ünal In Bournemouth?
Enes Ünal’s first six months in England have been viewed as successful mainly because of what he’s been able to return in such the short amount of playing time he’s been allotted. In 23 average minutes played, he’s averaged 1.4 shots per game with half of that on target.
His 182 minutes per goal contribution also means if given more playing time in the upcoming season, he’d be capable of returning a goal every two games. It’s understandable for a striker who’s played most of his games as a substitute to underperform his XG and miss several big chances but banking on his overall metrics, he’s expected to be a much better player next season.
Enes Ünal’s passing accuracy in his half averaged 86%, while in the opponents’ half, he averaged 71%. This not only shows teamwork but also impressive passing ability for a striker. It’s also good to note that all his metrics were obtained from an average of 10.4 touches per game. Bournemouth views Ünal as a striker who can score 15+ goals a season.
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Ebenezer has been an avid writer for over a decade and a half. Within that period, he has garnered experience in various fields such as editing, graphics design, transcribing, sales, data analysis, and football management. He’s also the author of the mystery thriller novel “The Eye of Ra.”
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