Aston Villa ace Leon Bailey is reportedly the latest concern with regards to being a potential injury doubt to face Liverpool on Monday night.
Villa have been hit with brutal injury setbacks all season with the likes of Tyrone Mings, Emiliano Buendia, Boubacar Kamara and Jacob Ramsey all being long-term absentees, while several other key individuals have missed time at various points.
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While it has still been an excellent campaign and we’ve shown incredible resilience to battle through those injury blows, there is no doubt that we’re now limping to the finish line as the increased workload is taking its toll on those who are still available.
There was good news in midweek as Emiliano Martinez returned against Olympiacos, albeit we sadly exited the Europa Conference League, but Alex Moreno, Youri Tielemans, Nicolo Zaniolo and Morgan Rogers all missed out with knocks.
As per the Express and Star, Bailey could be the latest concern as we prepare to host Liverpool in the Premier League on Monday, as while the 26-year-old has been wearing heavy strapping on his knee for a number of games already and has seemingly been playing through pain, he took some heavy blows in Greece and was seen limping in the early stages.
According to the report above, he will be assessed by the Villa medical staff to determine if he’s available to play against the Reds, and if he is also forced to miss out, it really would leave us stretched thinly as we go in search of a win that would secure Champions League football for next season.
It’s hoped that the news is positive over the weekend and we not only see Bailey passed fit to feature but also see others return too, as it would certainly be a welcome boost to give us options and depth to switch things if needed.
Bailey has been superb this season having contributed 14 goals and 14 assists in 51 appearances across all competitions, but much like the rest of the Villa squad, this gruelling campaign is starting to break him down too it seems.
Villa’s bench on Thursday night told its own story with the average age of the outfield players being 20.25, and it’s likely that we’ll see many of our talented but inexperienced youngsters on the sidelines again on Monday as we patch together a matchday squad.
