Aston Villa midfielder Ross Barkley has provided an update on the injury that has sidelined him since early January.
The 31-year-old hasn’t featured since he was forced off after just 23 minutes of our FA Cup win over West Ham Utd on January 10, and we’ve certainly missed his presence in the squad since.
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While he hasn’t been a regular starter for Unai Emery this season, he has given us an important alternative option in midfield with his technical quality, and with four goals and two assists in 24 appearances across all competitions, he’s been an important part of the group.
Having been sidelined for over a month now, it had led to many questioning how a reported calf issue was severe enough to keep him out for so long, but Barkley has confirmed on social media that he initially sustained a MCL tear before injuring his calf.
“MCL tear*. Calf happened trying to play on with the knee issue. Not far off,” he wrote on X in response to a fan comment.
It came after Emery confirmed that the Villa midfielder is unlikely to feature in our Premier League clash with Crystal Palace on Tuesday night, as he noted in his pre-match press conference: “Tomorrow is difficult for Ross Barkley.”
However, it’s hoped that he is closing in on a return soon after, with our FA Cup encounter with Cardiff City on Friday night hopefully a more realistic target for him to make his comeback.
Both John McGinn and Youri Tielemans have had to step up and take on a bigger workload given our recent injury problems in midfield, with Boubacar Kamara and Amadou Onana also currently sidelined.
In turn, getting players back for the run-in as we continue to compete and challenge in the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup will be a major boost for Emery, giving him alternative tactical solutions as well as depth to rotate and keep everyone as fresh as possible, and to try to avoid further injury setbacks in the coming weeks.
