Why Evann Guessand could thrive at Crystal Palace despite his Aston Villa toils

Evann Guessand’s first weeks at Crystal Palace have felt like a career compressed into fast-forward. Handed the club’s February Player-of-the-Month trophy by team-mate Jørgen Strand Larsen after capturing 46 per cent of the supporter vote, the Ivorian laughed, momentarily speechless, at how rapidly the narrative has flipped. A loan signing from Aston Villa on deadline day, he has already banked two goals, one assist and a seismic derby-day victory over Brighton in only 303 minutes of football, offering Selhurst Park something it has craved since Eberechi Eze’s departure: a fearless, direct ball-carrier who can tilt a match in a single surge.

The 24-year-old’s resurgence is all the more striking because his half-season at Villa Park was defined by frustration. Signed for €35 million from Nice last summer, Guessand managed two Europa League goals in 21 appearances and never completed a full Premier League match. Unai Emery, who valued positional versatility, often deployed him wide right, a role that demanded constant tactical discipline and exposed the forward’s discomfort in tight pockets. A candid conversation after a listless showing against Brighton in December underlined the gap between expectation and output, yet Villa still felt they had enough attacking depth to sanction a temporary exit when Palace rekindled their interest.

Oliver Glasner had never abandoned the idea. Palace’s recruitment team had flagged Guessand in the autumn of 2024, and the Austrian held a Zoom call with the player on the Côte d’Azur before Villa hijacked the deal. When the opportunity arose again in January, Glasner sold Guessand on a specific remit: a left-sided No. 10 in a 3-4-3, free to drift into the striker’s space, run beyond defences and create overloads in transition. It is the same licence that produced his best statistical season at Nice, and early evidence suggests the fit is far more intuitive than the rigid wide role he was asked to perform in the West Midlands.

Palace paid a £2 million loan fee and inserted an eight-goal-involvement threshold tied to appearances; trigger it and a further £28 million turns the move permanent. With three direct goal contributions already, Guessand is ahead of schedule. His stoppage-time winner against Wolves, a crisp finish from Tyrick Mitchell’s low cut-back, was followed by a coolly taken strike in the Conference League return leg versus Zrinjski Mostar, sealing progression after he had earlier slipped in Ismaila Sarr for the decisive goal at the Amex. Each intervention has showcased the attributes Glasner prizes: explosive pace, willingness to drive at defenders and the instinct to finish under pressure.

There are rough edges. Glasner admits the forward still mistimes pressing triggers, occasionally opening central passing lanes when the scheme demands he force play wide. Technical refinement once he has breached the first line of pressure remains a work in progress; against Tottenham he delayed a simple release to Sarr on the break and the moment evaporated. Yet those flaws are viewed inside the club as coaching points rather than terminal limitations, especially given Palace’s deliberate emphasis on transitional speed after a sluggish start to the campaign.

Villa, for their part, believe the player benefits from a system built on verticality rather than patient build-up. Privately they contend Guessand looks more at home when afforded 30 metres of grass to attack, a staple of Glasner’s game model. The Midlands club also retain confidence in their remaining forward options and were content to recoup the loan fee while retaining long-term contractual control should Guessand’s value balloon.

For now the trajectory points skyward. Glasner has rested the Ivorian selectively, mindful that his sporadic Villa minutes left him short of peak conditioning. Each cameo, however, has deepened the conviction that Palace have re-discovered a niche they feared vacant after the exits of Zaha, Eze and Olise within 12 months: a dribbler who can beat a man, draw a foul and finish. The manager’s instruction is explicit—retain attacking instinct, refine the rest.

Guessand’s story is a reminder that environment, as much as talent, shapes a Premier League career. At Villa he looked a £30 million misfit; at Palace, deployed in a role tailored to his strengths, he appears reborn. If the next six weeks yield five more goal involvements, the Eagles will face a delightful dilemma: trigger the clause and secure a cornerstone, or gamble that the sample size is still too small. Either way, the smile that spread across Guessand’s face as he clutched his unexpected silverware suggests he already knows where he feels most at home.