Aston Villa have been hit by an injury crisis ahead of Saturday’s Championship clash against Middlesbrough, according to a reliable journalist.
Express and Star correspondent Matt Maher reported on his personal Twitter account early on Thursday afternoon that Albert Adomah (ankle) has joined the club’s injury list and has been ruled out of the trip to the Riverside Stadium.
He could be joined on the sidelines by central midfielder John McGinn, who is being assessed by the club after playing 70 minutes of Wednesday’s 5-5 thriller against Nottingham Forest.
Albert Adomah (ankle) out of #avfc trip to Boro on Saturday. Winger could return for #wba. John McGinn being assessed after playing 70 minutes last night. Lansbury, Jedinak, Bree all out. Hutton suspended.
— matt maher (@mjmarr_star) November 29, 2018
Maher explained Villa will also be without senior quartet Henri Lansbury, Mile Jedinak, James Bree (injury) and Alan Hutton (suspension).
OPINION
It is a major blow for Villa boss Dean Smith that he will not be able to call upon proven performer Adomah for the weekend trip to Boro. It is an opponent the winger knows inside out after making 143 appearances for the club before heading to the Midlands. Adomah’s absence comes at a time when he was starting to rediscover the form that made him the Villa player of the year last season, when his 15 goals and seven assists did as much as anyone in their nearly-but-not-quite promotion pursuit. The right winger has been less statistically successful this season, but he supplied two assists in the memorable win over Birmingham City last weekend and is one of the most penetrative players in the squad. There is a sense that Adomah can really thrive in Smith’s fluent playing style in the second half of the season. He will be sorely missed at the weekend, but the club will hope his absence will only be a short one and he will soon be flying again.