Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has provided a positive update on Philippe Coutinho after he suffered an injury in our 4-0 win over Everton on Sunday.
Villa have been rocked by serious setbacks over the last fortnight, with Emiliano Buendia and Tyrone Mings expected to miss most, if not all, of this season, with significant knee injuries.
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That would have been difficult for the squad to deal with and it likely had an impact on our performance against Newcastle Utd in our Premier League season opener last weekend as we fell to a 5-1 defeat at St James’ Park.
However, we showed great character and resilience to bounce back on Sunday, but there was further concern on the injury front as Coutinho went down in pain in the latter stages clutching his knee.
Naturally, the worst was feared that our bad luck had struck again, but fortunately based on Emery’s initial understanding of the issue, it doesn’t sound as serious as it looked based on the Brazilian playmaker’s reaction.
“I don’t think it’s serious,” he told Sky Sports. “I think it’s maybe a muscular injury, hopefully it’s small. First test with the doctor suggests it’s his hamstring, I think in two or three weeks Coutinho is going to be available again.”
That in turn will be a welcome boost for Villa, as although the 31-year-old has played a limited role for some time now due to fitness issues, he still has the potential to be a key figure for us with such a hectic schedule ahead.
Conversely, with speculation over his future again this week, it remains to be seen if he even stays with us beyond this transfer window, and so a long-term injury would possibly derail any potential move away from the club in the coming weeks.
Villa will no doubt carry out further tests on Monday to determine the extent of the setback, but in contrast to the general mood and indications following the Buendia and Mings injuries, it doesn’t sound as though Coutinho will be sidelined for too long.
