Out of sight but Aston Villa's Kortney Hause is far from out of mind

“Needed to see this,” wrote Kortney Hause last month, in response to a tweet which featured a photograph of Harry Kane and Jamie Vardy sat side by side on Leicester City’s bench just five years ago.

For Hause, the image served as a reminder of how fortunes can quickly change and now, after a hugely frustrating few months, the opportunity to alter his own might finally have arrived.

While the hamstring injury suffered by Tyrone Mings in last Sunday’s 4-1 defeat to Leicester was rotten luck for the England international, for Hause it has opened a door which until this point of the campaign had remained steadfastly shut, due to a combination of injury, illness and the form of others.

Certainly, the 24-year-old would not have envisioned reaching December without making a Premier League appearance when he signed a three-year deal at Villa in a £3million move from Wolves back in June.

Yet, in truth, he has been playing catch-up after suffering an ankle sprain in the club’s final pre-season friendly in Leipzig, an injury which meant he missed the start of the league campaign.

The early season form of Mings and Bjorn Engels, who quickly struck up a strong partnership in the heart of central defence, meant chances were hard to come by, while Hause also found himself behind Ezri Konsa in the pecking order.

His only appearances until now have come in the Carabao Cup, where he has played in all three of Villa’s ties to date.

There have been points at which everything seemed to be conspiring against him. When Engels was ruled out of last month’s fixture at Wolves through injury, Hause also picked up a minor knock in training which denied him even taking a place on the bench at Molineux.

Yet while Hause might have become regarded as something of a forgotten man by supporters, at Bodymoor Heath it has been a different story, with the former England under-21 international given reassurances by Dean Smith he remains part of the club’s long-term plans.

Despite obvious disappointment at his lack of playing time, Hause has continued to train hard while waiting for his chance.

In many senses he would have been forgiven for thinking he was stuck back where he was 12 months ago at Wolves, firmly out of the picture.

Yet his own recent history has instead been a source of encouragement. Having initially joined Villa on loan last January, Hause spent more than a month on the sidelines after enduring a nightmare debut in a 3-0 defeat at Wigan.

But he rebounded to become a key player during the start of Villa’s 10-match winning run and then, after losing his place through injury, returned to make a key substitute appearance at Wembley as Smith’s team closed out the play-off final win over Derby.

The fact he has fought back from the fringes before has helped Hause stay motivated during a tough start to the campaign. Neither has it been forgotten by Smith and his coaching staff, who have always been confident he would be ready when called upon.

Throughout his time at Villa the defender has shown a willingness to work and adapt, which has impressed Smith.

Hause’s chance has now arrived at a pivotal moment in Villa’s season. Today’s trip to Sheffield United begins a run of seven matches in the space of 22 days which will go a long way to determining the club’s aspirations for the rest of the campaign.

It includes Tuesday’s Carabao Cup quarter-final with Liverpool, concludes with the FA Cup third round tie at Fulham, with several vital Premier League fixtures in between. For Hause, the opportunity he has longed for may finally have arrived.