Ross Barkley has already been ruled out of Aston Villa’s Premier League meeting with Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday, but Dean Smith has revealed that he could return in time to face Burnley next Thursday or West Bromwich Albion on Sunday week.
As per Daily Mail, the manager said: “Ross it out still. He’s running now but this game will come too soon for him. Either next Thursday or Sunday (against West Brom), we’ll look at it but what we don’t want to do is miss him for too long so we don’t want to rush it.”
Barkley has made six appearances in all competitions for Villa since joining on a season-long loan from Chelsea. The 27-year-old’s last outing saw him suffer a hamstring injury in Villa’s 2-1 defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion, resulting in him missing their 2-1 loss at West Ham United.
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Barkley will be missed in midfield, as he has scored two goals and set up another one in six Premier League games while impressing alongside Jack Grealish. The England international has created 15 chances, completed 11 of his 14 successful dribbles and has taken 17 shots (WhoScored), so he’ll be a difficult player to replace.
Smith doesn’t have a lot of cover in the engine room beyond Conor Hourihane, but the 29-year-old provides creativity and brings an attacking threat, so he’s the obvious player to come in for Barkley.
In other news, a journalist has claimed that one Aston Villa player remains in demand.
