Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has suggested that he’s hopeful that he will welcome back key individuals to training next week following their injury setbacks.
Villa face Man Utd this Sunday in another crucial game for our European hopes, but we’ll once again be without Matty Cash, Philippe Coutinho, Leon Bailey and Boubacar Kamara due to injury.
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The quartet have missed a significant run of games already, and with only five remaining in this Premier League campaign, time is running out for them to give us a major boost in some decisive upcoming showdowns.
Emery provided an update on their respective conditions, and there was good news as the Villa boss suggested that they could resume group training next week, which may well put them in contention to feature against Wolves next weekend.
“I think it’s not going to change,” said Emery at Friday’s pre-match media conference. “Cash is close but I think not for Sunday, Coutinho is close but not for Sunday, Leon Bailey as well is close, Kamara is close.
“The four players are out, Jed Steer is completely out for the season, but the four players are close. Maybe they can train with us next week but not for Sunday.”
On Kamara, he conceded that we perhaps rushed him back too quickly against Chelsea as he suffered a setback of the same injury, and so the plan now is to ensure that the French midfielder is absolutely ready to return this time round.
Further, he expanded on Coutinho and Bailey’s current condition, and revealed that the attacking duo are close to returning to training, but given the length of their absence, it seems highly unlikely that any of the four Villa players will be ready to start against Wolves given their lack of match fitness.
In turn, the likelihood is that if they can get a full week of training under the belts, they could be in contention to make the bench at Molineux. That in itself would be an important boost for us though, as it gives Emery different tactical options and solutions if needed to influence the game, and ultimately it lessens the load on the players who have played significant minutes in recent weeks.
Emery conceded after our win over Fulham on Tuesday that perhaps tiredness was a factor in the second half, and so while in the more immediate future it’s hoped that the squad has been able to recharge their batteries for Sunday, reinforcements could return in time for Wolves.
“Yes, yes, he played at Chelsea and felt the same injury,” Emery added on Kamara. “Now we want him to be fully recovered and be 100 per cent ready for the matches (when he returns). The time he has been out is normal for his injury. Next week, if everything goes well, maybe he can start to train with us. Yes, I think so [he will play again this season] because he is going well. But we are trying to do each step at a time and making sure he will come back.
“They [Coutinho and Bailey] are so close to starting training with the team. I don’t know if they will be ready to start the next match against Wolves.”