Aston Villa have been dealt a blow with Keinan Davis ruled out of training due to a persistent injury problem.
The 21-year-old forward had been a regular among the first team squad since December, appearing as an unused substitute for nine consecutive games, but has not been seen since the start of February.
Lifting the lid on the striker’s whereabouts, manager Dean Smith confirmed that it was an ongoing pelvis issue which was bothering him, so much in fact that he has been ruled out of training alongside his teammates.
He told the Birmingham Mail: “He has not trained this week because of a problem in his pelvis. It has been niggling away at him.
“He has played through it at times and then found he is in too much pain. He has not been on the bench because of that.”
Opinion
Those not in the know might wonder what the problem is with having a 21-year-old with just one first team appearance this season is, but that would just be naivety and ignorance. Davis was quite clearly a trusted backup option to his manager when fit and with just Tammy Abraham and Jonathan Kodjia as the only experienced centre forwards in the senior side, an injury to either would leave Smith in the lurch. You can be sure that with the form the current starting pair are in, Davis would have at least been given one substitute outing by now if he was not forced to sit on the sidelines and the sooner his injury problem is fixed the better for everyone at the club. He needs to be playing regularly at his age to boost his development and it will be a real worry he is already plagued by an injury niggle. Hopefully it is something that can be sorted out – otherwise he is going to have a tough career in football.