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Brighton once landed 'incredible' double signing but duo hardly featured for Seagulls

Brighton once sent shockwaves through the Championship with an impressive double deal.

17.02.26, 08:55 Updated 22.05.26, 14:52 3 Minute Read

Charlie Parker-Turner

Charlie Parker-Turner

Fourteen years ago today, Brighton completed an impressive double swoop to acquire the services of Gai Assulin and Abdul Razak from Manchester City. 

Upon their arrival, manager Gus Poyet labelled the promising deal a ‘no-brainer’ when speaking to The Argus. When speaking on Assulin, who was once nicknamed  the ‘Israeli Messi’, he added: “Gai was one of the top young talents in the world four or five years ago.”

In the early years of his career, the then-20-year-old had impressed in the Barcelona youth ranks, eventually breaking into the Barcelona B team before manager Pep Guardiola was left with no choice but to integrate him into the star-studded first-team squad, which featured Lionel Messi, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Thierry Henry, Andres Iniesta, Dani Alves and more.

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Charlie Parker-Turner

Charlie Parker-Turner Editor

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