Aston Villa, despite securing a 3-1 victory in the West Midlands derby over Wolverhampton Wanderers, were unable to bask in their glory after one of Unai Emery’s star men limped off injured.
Aston Villa injury news
Fixtures are beginning to come thick and fast for Villa, who made their long-awaited Champions League return in midweek, beating Young Boys in comfortable fashion. The task of overcoming their Midlands rivals then stood in their way and it was not a task without its complications.
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The Villans initially got off to a disastrous start and deservedly trailed thanks to Matheus Cunha’s opener, before battling back in fine fashion to eventually win 3-1 courtesy of Ollie Watkins, Ezri Konsa and what feels like a mandatory goal from the bench for Jhon Duran these days.
It wasn’t a game full of positives even after that comeback, however, with Villa’s injury list only increasing at the worst time possible. With Champions League football alongside their domestic responsibilities to balance, Emery’s side will suffer if their list of absentees grows even more ahead of a packed schedule. On that front, the Spaniard confirmed one frustrating blow.
As revealed by Emery and relayed by Birmingham World, John McGinn could now miss weeks for Aston Villa after limping off before half-time with a hamstring injury.
The Villa boss told reporters: “It’s his hamstring. In January against Tottenham he had a hamstring injury as well. He will not be available I think for a few weeks.”
Arguably one of their most important players, Villa must now put their squad depth to the test for the first time, perhaps turning to the likes of summer signing Ross Barkley for a result. One injury blow for McGinn could quickly turn into a much-needed opportunity for the former Everton man.
Games that "amazing" McGinn could miss
After limping off, McGinn may now be out of action for at least a couple of games, if not more with Emery revealing that the Scot could be out for a few weeks. Almost immediately, he will miss Villa’s Carabao Cup trip to Wycombe Wanderers, before Ipswich Town in the Premier League next weekend and could still be in doubt for Villa’s big clash against Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
The underdogs even if they did have McGinn at their disposal, Villa’s task against Bayern Munich will become that much tougher if they are still without their star man in the middle of the park.
Emery is well aware of McGinn’s quality too, having previously praised the midfielder after his side’s victory over Everton last season. He told reporters via Birmingham Live: “I am very happy for him because he scored, and he is not usually scoring a lot. He has to get to the box to create chances and to score.
“He did that perfectly for the first goal, and his performance today was very good, and is happy to play right side, left side, inside, playing as a midfielder, as a number 10 and I think he is very important for us. Like Leon Bailey last week, he didn’t play well, but today he was amazing.”