Aston Villa wounded as second international injury could leave Emery short

A second Aston Villa man has been sent home from international duty due to injury, and his problem could potentially leave Unai Emery short in one position.

Villa will already be worried that one of their shining lights, Johan Manzambi, was sent home from Switzlerland duty with a calf injury. There is not yet any knowledge of whether he’ll be sidelined.

A second Villan being sent home could compound issues, then.

Indeed, Poland have confirmed they have sent Matty Cash back to Birmingham after he was concussed late on in the 2-1 defeat to Romania.

Their statement read: ‘Matty Cash is leaving the ongoing Poland national team training camp due to a concussion.

‘The defender suffered the injury during Saturday’s match against Romania in Bucharest and will be unable to play in Tuesday’s match against Sweden.’

Villa will monitor Cash in the coming days, following concussion protocols.

That means the defender will have to follow a six-stage return to play process, with non-contact training required before he can return to normal training.

Given concussion symptoms can remain for up to two weeks, there is a chance that a slow recovery could see Cash could miss the Premier League match against Sunderland on November 21.

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Villa could remain short at right-back

Villa are already lacking in full-backs – Matteo Ruggeri has around a month before he’s likely to be back in action, while Cash was suspended for the last game, with Aaron Wan-Bissaka also missing through injury.

That meant Taylor Harwood-Bellis made his Villa Premier League debut in a position largely unfamiliar to him.

Unai Emery would not have introduced the new signing there for his debut if he had any choice, and he’d evidently rather his normal right-backs are available for the next game.

While there’s no sense of where in the concussion recovery timeframe Cash might sit, leaving a question mark for the Sunderland clash, though should there not be any hiccups with Wan-Bissaka’s thigh injury, he should be able to be involved.

Ahead of the 4-4 draw against Manchester United prior to the international break, Emery stated he was “close” and would be monitored in training.

While he wasn’t involved for that clash, the additional two weeks should mean he’s able to return.