Aston Villa fullback Lucas Digne has had an interview with Colinterview this week, during which he recalled his arrival at Villa Park back in 2022.
The Frenchman had spent three and a half years playing for Everton, who he had joined from Barcelona in 2018 in a €20m deal.
He had proven to be a key player for the Toffees following his arrival but a bad relationship with former Blues boss Rafa Benitez, meant by January 2022 he was on the way out.
He eventually received a call to join Aston Villa and has now recalled that story, revealing how Steven Gerrard made the option of going to Aston Villa sound so attractive.
“Well, actually, I was cold with my coach at Everton, with Rafa Benitez. And so, as soon as he saw that I was cold with Benitez, he called me directly,” the defender recounted.
“He got my number, I don’t know how. He called me. And he even sent me a message on Instagram. I saw the certificate. Steven Gerrard. I said, oh yeah!,”
“That’s a great anecdote. Because I said to myself, yeah, it’s coach 2.0. He sends me a DM. So, that made me smile. And so, we started talking on the phone. He said to me: ‘yeah, I absolutely want you. I don’t know if we can do it financially’. At first, he was talking to me about a loan.
“I said, ‘I’m not interested in a loan’ I have my children so I need to have a transfer to be able to settle down and have stability. And so, he said to me: ‘no, no. I absolutely want you. So, we’re going to do it’. And a week later, he called me back. He said, we’re going to do everything to recruit you. And then, three weeks later, a month later, I was there.”
Aston Villa ended up spending €30m to sign Digne from Everton in that transfer window, with him signing a contract until 2026.
So far, the fullback has made 61 appearances for the club, and continues to be an importance player for the team with Unai Emery in charge, currently with 14 games this season.
Digne isn’t the only player who seemed to have problems with Rafa Benitez at Everton, and the funny thing is that the Spanish manager ended up getting sacked just days after the player left Goodison Park to join Aston Villa.
