Youri Tielemans sidelined for a minimum of two months as Aston Villa’s injury issues escalate.
Aston Villa manager Unai Emery has confirmed that Youri Tielemans is expected to be sidelined for the next few months due to an ankle injury sustained at St James’ Park on Sunday.
The 28-year-old was substituted for Lamare Bogarde in the 74th minute of Villa’s 2-0 win over Newcastle after a collision with Lewis Miley, adding to the increasing list of unavailable midfielders.
The Belgian now joins Boubacar Kamara on the injury list, along with John McGinn, who announced that he successfully underwent surgery earlier this week.
This situation leaves Villa without several of their primary midfield options for their final Europa League group-stage match against RB Salzburg at Villa Park on Thursday.
Villa has already secured a position in the top eight but aims to secure the top spot with a victory against Salzburg.
Emery stated: “We are aware of Kamara, McGinn, and Tielemans.”
“Kamara will be out for a long time; I believe he won’t return this season. McGinn is expected to be out for approximately 6-8 weeks, and Tielemans is looking at 8-10 weeks.”
“Following these updates on our players, we need to assess how we can manage our central midfielders in the upcoming matches.”
“Ross Barkley is set to return in a few days. He has been training individually and is very close to rejoining us.”
“I think the other players are doing well; they are fit for tomorrow.”
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Emery also confirmed that Douglas Luiz is nearing a return to the club, which would enhance the midfield options amid the recent injury challenges.
The 27-year-old previously made over 200 appearances for Villa before moving to Juventus in 2024.
The Brazilian spent the first half of the season on loan at Nottingham Forest and is prepared to come back to Villa Park for the remainder of the season.
Regarding his other midfield alternatives, Emery added: “Amadou Onana will be returning, and Ross Barkley will be back in a few days.”
“I believe Luiz is close to being finalized.”
Leon Bailey’s loan at Roma was terminated early last week, but he will not participate on Thursday, nor will new signing Tammy Abraham, who has not been registered.
Abraham rejoined the club permanently on Tuesday from Besiktas after being part of the Villa team that achieved promotion back to the Premier League in 2019, scoring 26 goals in 40 appearances.
Emery remarked: “Of course, they are not participating in the Europa League, Leon Bailey and Tammy Abraham. They are out, but we have sufficient players.”
“When we allowed Donyell Malen to leave, Tammy Abraham was one of the players we considered. It is crucial to have two strikers. We are eager to see how he can assist us.”
