The overwhelming takeaway from Aston Villa’s opening game of the season, a goalless draw at home to Newcastle, was that Unai Emery’s side were strangely stale, lacking in sharp edges and devoid of a spark. Villa’s xG – for what it’s worth – was only 0.13. Enter Evann Guessand? Guessand had a watching brief at Villa Park as his new teammates struggled to penetrate the opposition but presumably Emery is tempted to introduce his £30m signing from Nice, a powerful forward with a penchant for eliminating defenders and tearing down the flanks, in search of victory at Brentford this weekend.
For Guessand there are new surrounds, and these remain early days, but the 24-year-old is coming in hot, fresh from a breakout season at Nice where he scored 13 goals in 40 matches (33 of which were starts) and was voted their joint-player of the season after helping the team to fourth in Ligue 1, their highest finish since 2016-17. Guessand’s final goal for Nice came in a 6-0 home win against Brest. The visitors’ goalkeeper that day? Marco Bizot, the 34-year-old Dutchman who is Villa’s only other arrival this summer.
Guessand predominantly featured on the right wing for Nice but also operated off the left, as a No 9 and behind the striker. “He is capable of pulling something out of the bag to make the difference,” says Lilian Nalis, the Nice assistant manager. “If he gets in front of you, it’s difficult for defenders to get him back.”
Last season was his first as a regular starter for Nice, for whom he starred domestically and in the Europa League after loans to Lausanne and Nantes. For Nalis, Guessand’s equaliser at Nantes, where he seized the ball in the box, took the briefest of glances at goal and sent a fizzing left-foot shot into the top corner, stands out. “He’s at his best on the wings because there he can take on people, dribble and accelerate beyond defenders with his speed,” says Nalis, the former Leicester and Plymouth defender who spent six years in England. “Evann, with his goals and assists, had a big part in taking us towards the top.”
Guessand was born in Ajaccio, the capital of Corsica, where his father, Herve, also a striker, played, and joined Nice aged 12 after being spotted at ASPTT Marseille, a multi-sport youth club. From that point Guessand always felt a fondness for Nice, where he was a boarder at the College du Parc Imperial secondary school, mixing with youngsters aged between 11 and 20, 200km from his family home in Marseille. Nice’s then academy director, Alain Wathelet, wanted to gauge Guessand’s talent so asked him to join an Under-14s session, in which he impressed with his dribbling skills and eye for goal. “Within five minutes, we approved him,” says Nice’s pre-academy coach, Pascal Bistarelli, for whom an Under-15s title-deciding match sticks in the memory. “It was 2-2 at half-time and I asked him to increase his level. It finished 6-2, Evann scored a hat-trick.”
Guessand’s education in Nice fuelled his drive to succeed. He was a ballboy and flag bearer at Nice matches and soon grasped the lyrics of Nissa la Bella, Menica Rondelly’s hymn synonymous with the city. “Evann always showed great attachment to Nice, even when he went on loan to Lausanne and Nantes,” says Bistarelli. “He was always determined to play in the Nice first team.” Guessand, who was given his debut against Frejus Saint-Raphael in the Coupe de France by Patrick Vieira in 2020, playing as a left winger, has stayed in touch with Bistarelli; the pair exchanged messages when he signed for Villa and Guessand gave him his shirt for Bistarelli’s birthday.
Guessand represented France at youth level but made his Ivory Coast debut last year. He grew up idolising Didier Drogba and the pair had dinner in Abidjan a few years ago and have remained in contact. But while Guessand has drawn comparisons to Drogba, unlike the former Chelsea player he is not a conventional No 9. “I think if you talk about the power he’s got, I would say yes, they are similar, but they’re not the same kind of player,” says Nalis. “Drogba enjoyed the battle of playing when he had his back to goal, a defender on his back. Evann doesn’t like that so much – he prefers almost hugging the touchline so he can see all the information he needs before making his move.”
Villa tracked Guessand, who rejected a move to the Saudi Pro League side Neom earlier this summer, for 12 months before his arrival. They moved to sign him, amid strong interest from Crystal Palace, before the £39m sale of Jacob Ramsey to Newcastle and Leon Bailey’s expected exit to Roma to prevent the possibility of being quoted an inflated price for a player who had three years remaining on his Nice contract.
Villa acknowledge Guessand’s game requires some refinement but they see shades of Morgan Rogers in a player who is also adept at retaining the ball under pressure. Emery admires his versatility, citing his ability to play across the frontline, including as a No 10. “We are watching him, giving him a lot of information about how we want to build the team,” says Villa’s manager. “He is watching our analysis, our matches. I am using him as a striker and winger [in training]. Finding how to best put him into our structure is my job. He is going to help us a lot, hopefully.”
Now Guessand, voted the second-best African player in Ligue 1 last season, behind Paris Saint-Germain’s Achraf Hakimi, plans to build on his promise in the Premier League. “I think England is a step up,” says Nalis. “You get no time to rest; English football will kick your ass if you think you’re going to take your time or if you think you’re going to wait until you’re capable of playing at your high level. You need to perform.
“English football is probably more physical than French but I’ve seen him have some good games against tough guys. I’m looking forward to him showing his skills in England.”