Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has spoken to the media ahead of our FA Cup clash with West Ham Utd, and provided our latest team news ahead of the encounter.
Villa will be eager to put together a cup run after disappointment in the Carabao Cup earlier in the campaign, and for all the positives since Emery took charge, we’ve struggled in the domestic cup competitions in recent times.
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Earlier this week, Emiliano Martinez spoke about his desire to win a trophy with the club and deliver that to the fans, and so the expectation is that we’ll name a strong starting line-up against the Hammers as we look to advance to the next round.
However, one player who won’t feature is skipper John McGinn, as Emery has ruled him out after he suffered a hamstring injury in our win over Leicester City last time out.
“John McGinn, he is not being available for tomorrow,” he said, as per VillaTV.
The Villa boss wouldn’t provide a recovery timeline for the Scottish international when questioned again on his condition as he reiterated that is ruled out vs West Ham, and so it’s hoped that it won’t result in a lengthy spell on the sidelines, with games against Everton, Arsenal, Monaco, West Ham and Celtic all still to come before the end of January.
McGinn, 30, has made 24 appearances so far this season across all competitions, scoring two goals and providing four assists to go with his defensive contributions, and although he’s struggled to hit top form consistently and had a previous hamstring setback earlier in the campaign, he remains a fundamental part of the team with what he gives us in both phases of the game.
In turn, we’ll certainly miss his presence on Friday night in what is the club’s 150th anniversary celebratory game, but it’s hoped that we have the quality and strength in depth to cover that absence and get the win to progress in the competition.
That blow aside, it appears as though Villa have an otherwise clean bill of health across the squad apart from the long-term absence of Pau Torres, and so there is an intriguing wait ahead before we see what our line-up looks for the cup clash.
