The Definitive Guide to Living in the Capital , Cairo , Egypt

Main image: avfc.co.uk

For the past few days, the Facebook newsfeed has been plastered with memes of a famous football figure. Can you guess who it is? That’s right! Ever since the announcement of his summer signing with Aston Villa, Mahmoud Ahmed Ibrahim Hassan, commonly known as Trezeguet, has been the topic of conversation of many a discussion. 

For the minority (probably 0.2%) of the Egyptian population who don’t know Trezeguet, let’s give him a quick introduction, and shed some light on Aston Villa as well. Firstly, Mahmoud Hassan was nicknamed after former French footballer, David Trezeguet, after his youth coach noticed similarities between them in playing style and appearance. Secondly, the athletic star’s career has involved many prominent national and international names, including Egyptian team, Al-Ahly; Belgian team, Anderlecht; and Turkish team, Kasimpasa. Finally, his many achievements include his contributions in Egypt’s victories during the 2012 and 2013 CAF Champions League, as well as his title of Highest Scoring Egyptian player in the Turkish top flight in a single season.

As for Aston Villa, nicknamed The Lions, it is an English professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham. Villa competes in the Premier League and was founded in 1874. Furthermore, it was one of the founding members of the Football League in 1888 and the Premier League in 1992. To this day, Aston Villa is one of only five English clubs to have won the European Cup, in the1981–82 season.

Now, back to Trezeguet’s signing! Last Wednesday, the frenzy of news activity was launched after the reveal of the Egyptian winger’s transfer to the English team, less than two years after joining Kasimpasa in 2018. Egyptian Streets shared the club’s official tweet, which read, “Aston Villa is delighted to announce the signing of Mahmoud Hassan for an undisclosed fee, pending the issuance of a work visa and international clearance”. BBC estimated the monetary value of the deal at GBP 8.5 million.

After two successful seasons, and 25 scored goals in the bag, we can all agree that he more than deserves everything coming his way. Trezeguet stated, “As for joining, I’m happy to be here at one of the biggest clubs around. I hope I can help the team to be successful and I will do my best. I’m looking forward to playing in the Premier League; it’s a dream”. He also commented on his upcoming reunion with Egyptian team captain and right-back for Aston Villa since 2017, Ahmed Elmohamady, “Elmohamady is my captain and always speaks with me about Aston Villa, saying it’s an amazing club and that I’d be happy here. I asked him a lot of questions. He will help me and believes I will help the team”. 

It is worth mentioning that Al-Ahly goalkeeper, Mohamed El Shenawy, is being considered for a spot on the Spanish team, Real Madrid, as a potential replacement for outgoing Costa Rican, KeylorNavas, according to certain sources. Seems that Egyptian players are on a roll!