Idrissa Gueye has commented on his time at Aston Villa.
Everton midfielder Idrissa Gueye has told the club’s official website that the support of the Aston Villa fans was his one source of motivation at Villa Park.
Gueye, 27, has made a superb start to life with Everton, striking up a fine midfield partnership with another former Aston Villa ace, Gareth Barry.
Everton’s Idrissa Gueye in action with Middlesbrough’s Adam Forshaw
Gueye is dominating the tackle stats with 4.5 per game, and Everton fans will feel that they’ve landed a bargain having paid just £7.1m (The Guardian) to sign the Senegal international from Aston Villa.
The midfielder spent just one season at Villa Park, coming in from Lille as a replacement for Fabian Delph during the summer transfer window 2015.
Gueye was a regular for Villa, playing in 35 of their 38 Premier League games, and despite earning praise from fans and pundits, he couldn’t stop Villa from being relegated after a dismal campaign.
Everton’s Idrissa Gueye in action with Tottenham’s Dele Alli
Villa are now attempting to rebuild in the Championship under Steve Bruce, and Gueye has commented on his time at the club ahead of Everton’s trip to face Chelsea this weekend.
Speaking to the Everton official website, Gueye acknowledged that his Villa career didn’t turn out well, but revealed that his one source of motivation was the support from the fans, who appreciated hard work and effort even when losing so many games.
West Brom’s Claudio Yacob in action with Idrissa Gueye
Gueye added that he now hopes he can repay Everton’s faith in him, and is grateful that the Toffees showed confidence in him despite being in that Villa team which suffered relegation earlier this year.
“It didn’t turn out well at Villa, but the one real source of motivation was that the fans would appreciate you if they felt you put effort in, worked hard and did your best,” said Gueye. “So that is what I tried to do.”
“Everton saw something in my game and in my qualities. Now it is all about trying to pay them back. I am grateful in the confidence they showed me and I want to pay that back by working hard throughout the season and give it my best as well as learning all the time. I’m pleased with how the season has started. It has almost been like an automatic understanding with the players,” he added.
What did you think of Gueye’s time at Villa Park?
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