Aston Villa have posted an update seemingly revealing that Alex Moreno has returned to training after his injury layoff.
The 30-year-old suffered a hamstring injury in our penultimate game last season in what was a significant blow for us, given how impressive he was following his January move from Real Betis.
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In 19 appearances, Moreno contributed three assists, but beyond the numbers, he was a pivotal influence on our style of play and an ideal fit for our system on the left side given his attacking qualities.
With Unai Emery preferring to play with three centre-halves in his backline, Moreno will undoubtedly give us a major lift and add a better balance to the side, and based on Villa’s tweet below, it appears as though the Spaniard is potentially going to be ready after the international break having returned to training.
After sustaining the problem back in May against Liverpool and subsequently undergoing surgery, it has been a lengthy and difficult road back for Moreno, who has stayed positive and provided updates on social media himself on his progress.
Villa will have wanted to avoid taking any risks and rushing him back too soon only for him to aggravate the problem, and so it’s hopefully now the right time for him to step up into group training and be available for selection against Crystal Palace on September 16.
To Lucas Digne’s credit, he has done a great job filling in for Moreno, as he impressed in wins over Hibernian, Everton and Burnley and registered multiple assists.
However, based on the second half of last season, Moreno should arguably be the clear first-choice at left-back for Villa, with the Spanish ace appearing to be a better fit for Emery’s set-up and approach.
Time will tell if he can at least make the bench against Palace, but with Villa having a busy second half of September with Carabao Cup and Europa Conference League commitments starting too, it’s fundamental that we start recovering some of our key players from injury.
Hello, @AlexMoreno. 😁 pic.twitter.com/i9MELod6Ys
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) September 7, 2023