Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has revealed that Alex Moreno’s comeback has been pushed back as he isn’t ready to return from his injury setback.
The 30-year-old underwent hamstring surgery after sustaining the injury in the penultimate game of last season in May, and he has yet to feature since.
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Having returned to the bench in the past week though following a return to group training over the recent international break, there was optimism that he was perhaps closing in on a comeback.
However, having been left out of the matchday squad for our win over Chelsea on Sunday, Emery has confirmed that the plan is for Moreno to sit out for a while again to ensure he’s fully ready to return.
“His injury was very hard,” he is quoted as saying by the Athletic’s Jacob Tanswell. “He’s getting better and better but he’s not feeling 100% comfortable to play.
“We’ve decided to stop some days, maybe some weeks to work with him and get him stronger. He is closer to getting in the squad.”
While it’s a disappointing development given the Spaniard was seemingly on the verge of making his comeback and having proved to be so influential for us last season, it’s important he returns when he’s ready to do so.
The last thing we would want is to see him push too hard and re-injure himself, thus leading to a prolonged spell out of training and a bigger step backwards.
Hopefully, it is a matter of days rather than weeks, but the Villa medical staff will undoubtedly make the best decision for all concerned.
While it does cast doubt over his involvement in our upcoming games against Everton, Brighton and even Zrinjski on October 5, it’s hoped it isn’t too much longer beyond that before we see Moreno back on the pitch and building his match fitness as he will be a huge boost for Emery to have at his disposal again.