Alan Hutton told BBC Radio 5 Live (18/10/20 at 1:30 pm) that Dean Smith tried to sign Neal Maupay ‘a few times’ for Aston Villa.
Since becoming Villa boss in 2018, Smith has raided his old club Brentford for a number of his former players, with the likes of Ezri Konsa and Ollie Watkins making that switch from London to the West Midlands.
Playmaker Jota also re-united with Smith at Villa Park prior to his release this summer, but he arrived from the Premier League club’s bitter rivals instead.
Nonetheless, Maupay seemingly could have been another Brentford player on Villa’s books, according to Hutton, who shared what it’s like playing against the Frenchman.
“Fantastic player,” Hutton told BBC Radio 5 Live. “He twisted me up once or twice [in Championship], so I know how good he can be.
“To be fair, he has come into the Premier League and he’s started on fire. He’s a real threat. He likes to run in behind. He’ll take it to feet. He’ll cause all sorts of problems.
On Smith wanting to sign him: “He did try quite a few times but he’s got that connection obviously with Brentford.
“I tell you one thing, every time we used to go there [Griffin Park] as Villa, we would have a nightmare. They were that good. They had Ollie Watkins, himself [Maupay] and they could cause you all sorts of problems. And it doesn’t surprise me that they have moved on from there and are now performing at a high level. You could see the quality that they have.”
When Villa earned promotion to the Premier League last summer, Maupay was also going to make his own leap up from England’s second-tier to the promised land.
Whilst many thought the play-off winners and a reunion with Smith was going to be his destination, he ended up at Brighton, who paid £16 million for his services [BBC Sport].
As Villa fans will know from their time in the Championship, Maupay can be a pest and a player you hate coming up against but love having on your team.
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