Club Brugge could be without six players for Aston Villa Champions League clash

Club Brugge could be without five players for their Champions League clash with Aston Villa on Wednesday.

Villa have picked up three wins from three, and know a win would more or less guarantee their passage to the knockout rounds. Brugge have won once, defeating Sturm Graz in their second match.

The Belgian outfit have the slight edge over Villa in terms of fitness, as they played on Saturday, whilst the Villains played on Sunday afternoon. Brugge ran out 1-0 winners against Oud-Heverlee Leuven, whilst Villa suffered a 4-1 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur.

Villa’s injury situation had been pretty decent over the last fortnight, but injuries have started to creep in again. As for Brugge, they’ve got a couple of players out due to injuries, suspensions, and not being registered.

Defensive midfielder Raphael Onyedika is suspended. He was red carded in the 40th minute in the 3-1 defeat to AC Milan at the San Siro. Onyedika is a key player for Brugge, as he's started 10 out of their 11 league matches, and he played the entirety of their last match against OH Leuven.

Former Manchester City, Bolton Wanderers, and Celtic defender Dedryck Boyata will play no part as he hasn’t been registered in their squad. The 33-year-old has made just one match day squad this season and doesn’t feature in manager Nicky Hayen’s plans.

Kamal Sowah is also not in the squad. Sowah was previously on the books of Leicester City, before they sold him to Brugge in 2021. The 24-year-old winger hasn’t made a match day squad this term.

Three Brugge players are currently injured according to TransferMarkt. Left-back Joaquin Seys has a 'minor knock’ having missed their last two matches. He’s featured in 16 matches so far for Brugge this season, and started in all three of their Champions League encounters.

Norwegian midfielder Hugo Vetlesen is in a similar position to Seys, and also has a ‘minor knock’. Vetlesen was an unused substitute three games ago, and then hasn't made the match day squad since.

Swedish centre forward Gustaf Nilsson has 'Achilles tendon problems' and has been out of action since the end of September. Nilsson had played a part in seven of Brugge's goals before his injury.