Ahead of West Ham‘s clash with Aston Villa tonight, Dean Smith has admitted the Midlands club considered making a summer move for Said Benrahma.
Having signed the Algerian during his time at Brentford, Smith considered bringing the 25-year-old to the Premier League but opted against the idea due to already having Jack Grealish playing in a similar role.
The Villa manager said: ”He’s (Benrahma) one we looked at but I see Jack Grealish on the left and there’s not many people who will get ahead of him if any.”
Smith’s hesitancy saw the Hammers swoop in and sign the winger, initially on loan before making the move permanent in the January transfer window.
The Villa boss continued to praise the Algerian, who has two assists to his name in the Premier League, describing his former player as a ‘talented boy’ who poses a threat ahead of the encounter.
The build-up to this clash has been packed with managerial praise of the opposition as Irons boss David Moyes took time out of his pre-match press conference to hail Villa captain as ‘probably the best player in the league’.
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There is a sense that the best is yet to come from Benrahma in a West Ham shirt.
He may not have produced the numbers by comparison to Grealish thus far, although there has been a bedding-in period for the Algerian as Moyes remained patient with the skilful attacking midfielder.
With consistent game-time now under his belt, the top Championship performer of 2019/20 will be hoping to have a big influence until the end of the season.
