Unai Emery confirms two fresh Aston Villa injury blows after Everton defeat

Aston Villa midfielder Jacob Ramsey was absent for the 2-1 defeat to Everton on Wednesday night due to a fresh injury, head coach Unai Emery has confirmed.

Fatigued and in need of squad rotation, the Villans made five changes for the Carabao Cup clash but were forced to play John McGinn at left-back to manage Lucas Digne’s minutes.

That rogue move had a knock-on effect on the rest of the squad and the midfield imbalance was clear to see as it played into the Toffees’ hands.

One man they really could’ve done with was Jacob Ramsey for his energy and agility on the half-turn, but he wasn’t present in the matchday squad at all.

“Jacob is not a hard injury. He has a small injury,” Emery admitted in the post-match press conference. “Hopefully, he can come back quick.

“I don’t know if Saturday [against Brighton & Hove Albion] he is going to be ready, but it’s not bad news the injury he has now,” Emery explained.

Ramsey isn’t the only player to head to the treatment room this week as Leon Bailey was taken off against Everton with what appeared to be a thigh strain.

Emery didn’t know the extent of the issue but said the 30th-minute substitution was due to an injury. The Spaniard confessed it changed the momentum of the tie for the worse.

Meanwhile, Emiliano Buendia and Tyrone Mings remain sidelined with long-term knee injuries and Alex Moreno is close to a return from a hamstring problem.