Aston Villa boss Dean Smith has issued updates on injured pair Leon Bailey and Morgan Sanson, while offering a timeline on their possible return.
Villa have been hit by a disrupted pre-season schedule as well as injury and fitness issues since the Premier League season began, and so it’s been a far from ideal couple of months.
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Just as it appeared as though the Villa squad was taking shape and Smith had an almost full group to select from, he has been hit with fresh injury setbacks with regards to Bailey and Sanson.
Bailey came off shortly after scoring his first goal for the club in our win over Everton, while Sanson had to be replaced in the Carabao Cup tie with Chelsea in midweek after 42 minutes of his comeback for the senior side.
Seeing the duo come off was bitterly disappointing and frustrating for them no doubt, and Smith has revealed that they won’t be returning any time soon.
“Leon has a strain which is likely to keep him out until after the international break. We would be hopeful that he would be available for the Wolves game but we will need to assess him nearer the time and see how he progresses over the next ten days or so,” he told the club’s official site.
On Sanson, Smith added: “He just felt a twinge in his hamstring. We don’t believe it’s going to be a bad one, he actually carried on for two or three minutes after which proves to me it’s not a bad one. It’s just he felt the twinge and knew it was time to get off.
“He’s been missing for the last three or four months with a knee injury and he’s worked really hard to get back to full fitness. He was building up his game minutes, so really frustrated for him but it will only be a small step backwards, that’s for sure.”
It’s a real shame to see Bailey and Sanson now face a fresh spell on the sidelines, but given the strength in depth in the Villa squad now, it’s hoped that we have the necessary quality and options to still put together a good run of form and start to climb the Premier League table in the coming weeks without him.
Given the nature of the injuries, it’s hoped that they make full recoveries and are eased back into things to avoid any additional setbacks further down the recovery line, and they will no doubt offer us a major boost next month when available.