Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has provided an update on Tyrone Mings and his potential return timeline after his lengthy injury layoff.
The 31-year-old suffered a serious knee injury in the opening game of last season, and has been sidelined since as he’s gone through a gruelling rehabilitation process.
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While he has offered some insight into his recovery over the last year, he was seen working in the gym with the rest of the squad this summer, while Emery provided an update on his possible comeback during our pre-season tour in the USA earlier this month.
However, having had a chance to see Mings at Bodymoor Heath again and reassess, it sounds as though his planned return has been pushed back slightly, but there is hope that we’ll see him back in group training next month in what would be a significant step forward in his recovery process.
“Previously the plan was to start in this month to train with us,” Emery told the media at his pre-West Ham press conference. “He is not training with us yet but hopefully in the beginning of September he can join us, progressively thinking he can fully train in September or October and then he can play.”
It’s a crucial aspect of our how squad will look this season, as Villa and Emery evidently believe in Mings’ ability to make a full comeback and return to his previous levels, as we’ve opted not to bring in reinforcements in that position this summer.
Clement Lenglet did his job last season during his loan spell from Barcelona to help fill that void, but currently, we don’t have that second, natural option to play as our left-sided centre-half behind Pau Torres.
Others can shift across if necessary of course if we look to rotate, but getting Mings back will be fundamental not only in giving us competition and depth to be able to compete on multiple fronts, but also given we’ve missed his presence, leadership and quality at the back having been such a defensive stalwart for us in recent years.
Hopefully this latest timeline will hold up and we’ll see him training with the rest of the group at the start of next month, and that in turn will set him up to make his long awaited comeback and make an important contribution to our campaign, in what would be a crucial boost for us.
