Unai Emery has confirmed Aston Villa will be without several first team players when they take on Newcastle United on Saturday afternoon.
Villa will continue their push for European football with the visit of the Magpies to Villa Park but the home side will have to do so without the services of Leon Bailey, Boubacar Kamara, Matty Cash and Philippe Coutinho.
In his pre-match press conference, Emery revealed his side have issues to overcome. “We have some injuries, but we have to carry on, we can’t use this as an excuse," he said.
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Leon Bailey was forced off in the second-half of their victory over Nottingham Forest last week and looks to have suffered a hamstring injury, meaning he will play no part against the Magpies. The severity of the injury is still unknown and the winger will continue to be monitored.
Midfielder Boubacar Kamara made his return from a significant injury at Stamford Bridge two weeks ago but was substituted after the first half after picking up another knock to his foot. The Frenchman has also been ruled out of contention for Saturday’s game.
Ashley Young has been filling in at right-back due to an injury to Matty Cash. The Polish defender injured his calf in a 3-0 win over Bournemouth last month and will be unavailable for selection.
Elsewhere, Philippe Coutinho is another who has missed a number of weeks out after picking up a hamstring injury and being sidelined for Villa’s last seven fixtures. The Brazilian will play no part in Saturday’s early kick-off.
The hope with all three of Kamara, Cash and Coutinho is that they will be available for Villa’s trip to Brentford next weekend after Emery claimed a week ago that the injuries may only keep them out for ’10 to 14 days’
Villa are looking fairly light in depth after suffering several key injuries and with Newcastle possessing such a strong bench in recent weeks, this could be a big weakness for the home side.
The only back-up options that Emery looks to have available away from the defence is Leander Dendoncker and Jhon Duran.
Predicted Aston Villa XI to take on Newcastle (4-2-3-1): Martinez; Young, Konsa, Mings, Moreno; Mcginn, Luiz; Ramsey, Buendia, Traore; Watkins.
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