In terms of weekends away, Dean Smith’s trip to Cairo last June could prove to be one of the best he has ever made. Accompanied by the Aston Villa sporting director, Jesús García Pitarch, the manager was in the Egyptian capital to run the rule over Mahmoud Trezeguet one last time before handing him the opportunity of a lifetime.
The winger had been starring for the Turkish club Kasimpasa and outshone Mohamed Salah by scoring in the hosts’ opening victory at the Africa Cup of Nations. An anonymous performance in Egypt’s shock defeat to South Africa in the last 16 did not dissuade Smith from taking the plunge for just £8.5m. How the player, who was given his moniker at the age of nine by a teacher due to his apparent resemblance to the former France striker, has repaid that gamble.
A priceless goal that his namesake who famously scored the winning goal at Euro 2000 would have been proud of gave Villa their first home victory over Arsenal since December 1998 under John Gregory and, more importantly, a real chance of Premier League survival. “It’s funny, Trez is one that came in late last summer and it’s taken a while in terms of adaptation along with the likes of Douglas Luiz,” Smith commented a couple of weeks ago. “His attitude is spot on and he works his socks off.”
For the 12th Egyptian to play in the Premier League, following in the footsteps of Mido, Amr Zaki and, of course, Salah has not been the smoothest of rides. Trezeguet came close to joining Nottingham Forest as a teenager and was also courted by Celtic before eventually joining Anderlecht on an initial loan in August 2015. Despite a promising start that earned him a permanent move, he was sent out on loan to struggling Mouscron, whose manager Mircea Rednic was less than complimentary about the Egyptian winger’s tactical discipline. “He runs in every part of the pitch except the part we need him to go to,” the Romanian said.
Hugely popular in his homeland having started his career at Cairo giants Al Ahly – he now has almost two million followers on Twitter – Trezeguet’s move to Turkey was heavily scrutinised in the Egyptian media. His form for the mid-table Super Lig club Kasimpasa almost earned him a move to Internazionale in 2018. Instead, he became part of Villa’s £144.5m splurge on 12 players after their victory in the Championship play-off final last year, joining compatriot Ahmed Elmohamady at the club and fulfilling a lifelong dream to play in the Premier League.
Against Arsenal, five of those signings started the match, with Pepe Reina and Mbwana Samatta also included after they joined in January following the long-term injuries to England goalkeeper Tom Heaton and Wesley – the Brazilian forward who cost a club-record £22.5m. But while Smith has become used to relying on the academy product Jack Grealish to inspire his side, the 25-year-old from Kafr El Sheikh in the Nile Delta has been the architect of their recent revival.
Villa’s talisman admitted in the aftermath of their victory that he has been struggling with fitness issues, although he looked back to his best during the second half against Arsenal. Ominously for Villa fans, Grealish also hinted that his future could lie elsewhere once this season is completed but Smith may already have a ready-made replacement. After scoring in 2-1 defeats against Liverpool, Wolves and Chelsea before the league was halted in March, Trezeguet’s main contribution in a Villa shirt until this month had been his last-minute winner in the second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final against Leicester.
Yet following two goals in the victory over Crystal Palace that kickstarted their survival push this month, his intelligent positioning at the back post for Conor Hourihane’s corner proved to be a masterstroke. While Reina looked grateful that his butterfingers moment – after Eddie Nketiah’s header came back off the post – did not prove fatal, the defensive discipline of Trezeguet and Grealish was integral in helping Villa to see out the victory that could prove so vital to their hopes of staying up.
Out of the relegation zone for the first time in five months, suddenly their destiny is in their own hands when they face West Ham at the London Stadium on Sunday.
