Aston Villa youngster Omari Kellyman is reportedly set for up to 10 weeks on the sidelines after suffering a hamstring injury last week.
The 18-year-old has emerged as one of our top talents at youth level over the past 12 months, having not only impressed for the U21s side, but also earning involvement with the first-team squad under Unai Emery too.
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While that has largely been in training sessions, he featured in our Europa Conference League qualifying round and the EFL Cup, and has been named on the bench in the Premier League on several occasions too.
Having also signed a new long-term contract earlier this month, it’s clear that he has a bright future ahead of him if he continues on his current trajectory, but there was disappointing news this week, as reported by The Athletic, as Kellyman sustained a hamstring injury against Crawley Town and is expected to be ruled out for between eight and 10 weeks.
Although it’s obviously not a long-term concern in that he’ll be back next year and will look to impress again in the second half of the campaign, it’s a frustrating setback for the teenager given his progress in recent months.
Albeit there was no guarantee that we would see him feature more regularly at senior level, there may well have been opportunities for him to be involved in Europe in particular, as we have a packed fixture schedule between the end of November and the New Year.
Nevertheless, the focus will now be on ensuring he makes a swift and complete recovery from the injury, and he’s able to rediscover his best form on his return ahead of a potentially important stage of his career next summer.
Villa will likely make a decision on whether or not he would benefit from another year with the youth team or if a loan move elsewhere will help his progress and development further, with the hope that it ultimately leads to Kellyman having a successful career in a Villa shirt in the long-term future.
