Dean Smith this evening provided a fitness update on Aston Villa’s squad, ahead of the club’s meeting with Newcastle United.
Villa host Newcastle
The Villans are set to return to action following the international break next Monday night, when they welcome Steve Bruce’s Magpies to Villa Park.
Unlike their opponents, who have been on the ascent in the Premier League of late, Aston Villa have largely-struggled over recent weeks.
The Claret and Blue fell to defeat in their last 3 league outings before the international break.
Granted, two of these came versus Manchester City and Liverpool, while the latest was at the hands of Black Country rivals Wolves two weeks ago.
As such, ahead of the latest round of Premier League fixtures, Dean Smith’s outfit sit 17th in the English top-flight table, teetering precariously above the relegation zone.
Grealish latest
As a result, Villa are no doubt desperate to turn their fortunes around with a much-needed 3 points on Monday.
And, speaking in a pre-match press conference earlier this evening, Dean Smith provided updates on the potential involvement of a pair of his side’s key performers.
First off, as cited by the reliable Ben Dinnery, Jack Grealish has returned to training, but remains a doubt to face Newcastle:
Grealish comes back into the fold although Dean Smith is reluctant to give a definitive answer on his availability. “Jack’s been training with us, but I am a bit ill-at-ease to say he’s been available because I’ve said it the last couple of weeks and he’s not played.” #AVFC
— Ben Dinnery (@BenDinnery) November 22, 2019
Tom Heaton is also set to train over the weekend, but Smith stopped short of revealing whether or not the shot-stopper will be available from the off in 3 days’ time:
“Tom [Heaton] has been out on the grass today, and he’ll be training tomorrow and Sunday, ahead of the game on Monday.” Jed Steer will miss the remainder of the year.
🚑 @PremierInjuries https://t.co/3OsRCOYAmr#AVFC
— Ben Dinnery (@BenDinnery) November 22, 2019
Finally, on Matt Targett and Bjorn Engels:
“Matt [Targett] came off just before HT at Wolves with concussion. He went through the protocol and he’s been training for the past week.” Bjorn Engels had an injection in his hip “about 10 days ago” and he’s been training as well. “I would expect them all to be fully fit.” #AVFC
— Ben Dinnery (@BenDinnery) November 22, 2019
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