Aston Villa boss Dean Smith spoke to the media on Friday ahead of our clash with West Brom and confirmed Jack Grealish remains out due to injury.
The Villa captain has been sidelined in recent months due to a shin injury, and it appears as though he’ll now miss his ninth Premier League game this weekend as we host the Baggies at Villa Park on Sunday night.
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Grealish has seven goals and 12 assists in 23 appearances for Villa so far this season, and as the driving force and creative spark in the side, it’s a fresh blow that he remains absent.
Smith didn’t give too much away on his condition, but he did also provide updates on Morgan Sanson and Wesley, with better news on the latter as he steps up his recovery from a long-term layoff.
“Jack Grealish is still out, Morgan Sanson is out, Trezeguet is out and Wesley is coming back and may be available for the squad,” he said, as noted by the club’s official site. “We’re going to have a good look at him today and tomorrow.”
“It’s been really tough. It’s as significant an injury as I’ve seen on a player, and it shows the strength of character for him to come back from it.
“During a pandemic, it’s been really tough as we haven’t been able to arrange the amount of games that we would normally get for someone recovering from an injury.
“We’ve had to improvise a little bit, but he’s certainly a willing lad and everyone will be pleased to see him getting back.”
While Villa must be prepared to match West Brom in terms of energy, desire and work-rate given it’s a derby, it takes on further importance given our opponents are still scrapping for safety at the wrong end of the table.
Grealish’s ongoing absence is a blow, but it’s hoped that others can step up this weekend and help us secure a positive result as we continue to push for a top-half finish in the Premier League this season.
