The Villans winger, on loan from Lille, has explained how his manager at the Championship club has helped improve his game.
Anwar El Ghazi has given a glowing assessment of Aston Villa manager Dean Smith, describing him as a “very good coach” with “his own vision about football”.
The Villans have experienced an upturn in form since the former Brentford boss was named as Steve Bruce’s successor on 10 October.
Smith has won five and drawn three of his 10 Championship games so far for his new side (Transfermarkt), and heading into the busy festive period, Villa sit eighth in the standings.
Under the new boss, El Ghazi has begun featuring more regularly, coming on as a substitute against Nottingham Forest on 28 November and starting the following three games.
The on-loan Lille winger was interviewed by the official Villa media team as part of their “One on One” feature and sang Smith’s praises when asked about his gaffer.
“He’s a very good coach,” replied El Ghazi. “I like that he has his own vision about football. The first day he came here he spoke and said he has a way of playing, a strategy, a plan.”
In addition, the 23-year-old credited Smith with improving his own game, explaining how this has come about.
“For him, it’s about your reaction when we lose the ball,” he added. “That’s the difference between winning and losing games – what is your reaction, what is your mentality in the game. Now I react directly to help the team. That really helped me.”
Up next for Villa is a crunch clash against high-flying Leeds United at Villa Park on Sunday, the first of four fixtures between now and New Year’s Day, and the mettle of both Smith and El Ghazi is to be tested during the busy festive period.
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