Former Aston Villa forward Anwar El Ghazi has admitted he will be using his experience from Villa Park to help new club Mainz.
Kicker cover the player today after he held a presentation presser at his new club, who he joined on a free transfer this week.
The winger had been out of contract after leaving PSV Eindhoven at the end of last season, having joined them from Aston Villa in a €2.5m deal last year.
He’d been with the Villans since 2017 when he joined in a €7m deal from Lille but spent various spells away from the club on loan, first at the French club and then Everton at the end of the 2021/22 season.
El Ghazi had a very up and down relationship with Aston Villa during his time there, managing 26 goals and 16 assists in 119 games for the club over various spells.
A low point was certainly the relegation battle in the 2019/20 season, when Aston Villa dodged relegation by a single point courtesy of a draw on the final day of the season.
He’s now hoping to use that experience to his advantage at Mainz, who currently sit bottom of the Bundesliga with one point from their first five games.
“I have played in big clubs where the pressure is higher than in Mainz,” he said.
“We never lost faith, always stuck together and talked to each other a lot. These are the key points for success,” he added, in regards to his time at Villa Park.
