Unai Emery preparing to make late call on Aston Villa duo
Unai Emery is preparing to make late calls on the fitness of Ezri Konsa and Leon Bailey for Villa’s crucial Premier League clash with Chelsea.
Both players are close to making a return from injury but Emery will run the rule over them in Friday’s final training session before making a decision.
The availability of centre-back Konsa is of particular importance with loan signing Axel Disasi unable to play against his parent club.
That would leave Tyrone Mings as Villa’s only fit and available centre-back if Konsa cannot play, with Lamare Bogarde poised to be drafted into defence if required.
“We are going to train this evening,” said Emery. “Because we played on Wednesday we trained on Thursday in the morning.
“He (Konsa) did the compensation work with the players. Today I will test him as well. If he is feeling good he will be in the squad. To play, or not, I don’t know. I will decide this evening or tomorrow morning.”
Villa sit ninth in the table after Wednesday’s 2-2 draw with leaders Liverpool, four points behind Saturday’s fifth-placed visitors.
Midfielders Ross Barkley and Amadou Onana remain out, along with defender Pau Torres.
Comment Guidelines
Iconic Media encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.