Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has provided our latest team news ahead of our Premier League encounter with Sheffield United.
Villa will look to bounce back after defeat to Newcastle Utd in midweek, a result which ultimately saw us drop out of the top four in the standings and make it just one win in our last five league outings.
READ MORE: Triple Villa exit confirmed with talented young duo sealing loan moves
Emery will be looking for a positive reaction from his players this weekend, and it had been hoped that there would be good news on the injury front to move us closer to being at full strength.
However, the Villa boss confirmed that Pau Torres remains out, while Nicolo Zaniolo has picked up a problem in training and won’t feature on Saturday evening either.
Long-term absentees Emiliano Buendia and Tyrone Mings of course remain sidelined too, with neither Jhon Duran nor Lucas Digne expected to be available.
“He is getting better, he is practising on the pitch,” Emery told the media when asked about Pau. as per VillaTV. “That is the first step before he can join us next week.”
On Zaniolo, he added: “He felt this morning in training some pain. He was not feeling good and did not finish the session. He is not in the squad. Hopefully it is not a big problem.”
While it’s positive news on Torres in that he is on the verge of returning to full group training, it is a blow in the more immediate future as his presence has been badly missed through this recent slump in form.
Clement Lenglet will continue to deputise in his place, but there is an obvious drop off given how influential the Spaniard has proven to be this season, and so it’s hoped that he can indeed step up his comeback next week and feature against either Chelsea in the FA Cup or Man Utd in the league next Sunday.
As for Zaniolo, that’s a disappointing new setback as the Italian playmaker had been expected to step up into a bigger role in the absence of Duran, acting as cover and depth behind Ollie Watkins up front.
However, he’ll hopefully avoid a lengthy stint out of action at least after further tests, with Digne expected back at some point this month too. What Zaniolo’s absence does likely mean though is an opening for new signing Morgan Rogers to come in and make an immediate impact.