Alex Moreno could now take part in Aston Villa’s Premier League clash with Tottenham following developments in the past 24 hours past 9pm on Monday.
The left-back injured his hamstring in the 1-1 draw with Liverpool at Anfield in May and has not played for Villa since.
Moreno returned to the team against Crystal Palace but did not travel with the team to Stamford Bridge in September as Unai Emery claimed (via journalist John Townley, September 24) that he was not 100% comfortable playing.
In fact, the Spaniard was in the squad for Villa’s last two Premier League matches against Nottingham Forest and Fulham, but was kept on the bench by Emery, who could have intend to give him important minutes with the U21 team during the international break.
The left-back played 63 minutes in Villa U21’s 4-3 win over Swansea City in the Premier League Cup on Monday night (November 13).
Aston Villa posted pictures on their official Twitter account of the Spaniard finally playing.
It will probably come as no surprise, then, to see the Spaniard in the opening minutes of Emery’s match against Tottenham on November 26, or in the next match in the Europa Conference League at home against Legia Warsaw (November 30).
Moreno has made 19 appearances in the Premier League after becoming manager Unai Emery’s first signing when he joined Real Betis for £13m in January this year, becoming a regular starter before suffered injury.
The former Real Betis man was excellent for the Villans last season, recording three assists in 19 league matches, exceeding the expected assists (xA) of 2.
58, with averaging 1.
2 key passes, completing 46% of his dribbles and averaging 1.
2 tackles.
per match [SofaScore].
According to FBREF’s Opta statistics, over the past year, among all full-backs in Europe’s top five leagues, Moreno was in the 96th percentile for players with progressive running speed (3.
87).
and is in the top 20% compared to competitors.
in terms of progressive passes received (6.
16 per 90) and successful recoveries (1.
24 per 90).
Moreno’s attacking qualities have been well documented, and in an Aston Villa team that changed their tactical framework to allow their full-backs to attack forward, this proved to be a perfect match.
In his absence, Frenchman Lucas Digne has handled the left-back responsibility expertly so far this season, meaning Moreno certainly faces an uphill battle to reclaim his place.
However, Moreno’s return to fitness is just days away, which will leave the manager and his counterpart with a selection headache when the football club resumes.
