Aston Villa were handed a double injury scare against Chelsea on Saturday night, with an update now provided ahead of the Villans’ clash with Olympiacos.
On Thursday night, Aston Villa have the opportunity to place one foot into the Europa Conference League final as Olympiacos visit Villa Park in the first leg of the semi-finals.
Unai Emery has the power to follow in Tony Barton’s footsteps and see Villa claim European silverware this season however, there will be a vast challenge to overcome first, with Olympiacos to beat over two legs.
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It’s poised to be a blockbuster at Villa Park on Thursday evening, with the hosts wanting to learn from their mistakes in the quarter-final and take more than a one-goal lead with them to Greece in the second leg.
The dramatic penalty shootout against LOSC Lille last time out was avoidable in the first leg, if the Villans had kept the scoreline at 2-0 however, the theatrics in France will live long in the memory of plenty of Villa fans.
On that night, Emi Martinez was the star of the show although, for all of his entertainment, the Argentine will now miss the semi-final first leg due to suspension and as seen on Saturday, injury.
Possible Emi Martinez injury time frame now explained ahead of Olympiacos clash
While Robin Olsen was always set to enter play in the first leg after Martinez received two bizarre yellow cards against Lille, the World Cup winner would have been out of the fixture regardless, after picking up an injury against Chelsea.
The 31-year-old was withdrawn at half-time during Villa’s 2-2 draw with the Blues due to what appeared to be a hamstring issue, leaving hearts in mouths as Emery’s prized ‘keeper failed to come out for the second half.
Fortunately, an encouraging update on the Argentina international’s absence has been provided by journalist Gaston Edul, who took to Twitter to share the timeframe of Martinez’s recovery.
Edul detailed that the former Arsenal shot-stopper ‘avoided a muscle injury’, adding that he will ‘train differently’ with the aim to play on Sunday away to Brighton.
If that fails to happen as planned, the journalist shared that the goalkeeper ‘will play’ in the second leg of the semi-final, stressing the importance of the fixture to Martinez.
Update on Emi Martinez is a relief ahead of the season run-in
The worst-case scenario would be adding Martinez to the list of Emery’s first-teamers who are out for the season, which has been avoided.
Theoretically, the 31-year-old is now poised to miss Thursday’s clash with Olympiacos, which he would have been forced to sit out on if he was fit due to suspension.
While Olsen is a capable keeper, having the world’s best goalkeeper in your ranks is a monumental advantage, with Martinez’s absence evident against Chelsea without his presence between the posts.
If the Argentine is to return against Brighton, the Villans will feel far more confident going into the must-win fixture, with a spot in the Champions League now in touching distance with three Premier League games left to play.
For now, all eyes will be on tomorrow night’s European showdown at Villa Park, where all faith will be with Olsen in place of Martinez against the Greeks.
The post 'If he doesn't...': Journalist shares update on Emi Martinez injury ahead of Aston Villa v Olympiacos appeared first on Aston Villa News.