Aston Villa No. 1 Emiliano Martinez continues to be linked with a potential move away from the club this winter. Is this just noise? Pointless rumors? Or is there actually some fire fueling the smoke? We will see by the closing of the winter window, which is in just a little more than a week.
In the meantime, Emi Martinez has a lower leg injury to try and shake off, ahead of the weekend fixture at Newcastle United. He did not make the squad for the 1-0 UEL win over Fenerbahce last night.
Newcastle United vs Aston Villa FYIs
Kickoff: Sunday Jan 25, 2pm, St. James Park, Newcastle, UK
Team News for Both Teams: Aston Villa FC Newcastle
Premier League Form, Standings: Aston Villa FC 3rd, 43 pts, WLWDL Newcastle United 8th 33 pts, LWWWD
Google Result Probability: Aston Villa win 27% Draw 25% Newcastle win 48%
Aston Villa Team News
Most likely, Martinez will be fine, and should be able to feature at Newcastle on Sunday. Two players with knee injuries, Ross Barkley and John McGinn, however, will not. Villa manager Unai Emery provided an update on both during today’s media session. First up, is the Scottish midfielder and team captain.
“McGinn, update I don’t have, because he is visiting some doctors,” Emery said. “We’ll know his assessment in a few days.”
So he won’t be back any time soon, but Barkley is not too far off from a return.
Emery on the veteran, oft-injured midfielder, earlier today: “Barkley is training individually, but close to being with the group, maybe next week.”
And then finally Boubacar Kamara (knee) remains sidelined.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, RG.org and Ratings.org. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and the Washington Post.