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Henri Lansbury’s hamstring injuries compound Aston Villa woes

By Josh Tonti

BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - JANUARY 05: Henri Lansbury of Aston Villa in action with Leroy Fer and Wayne Routledge of Swansea City during the FA Cup Third Round match between Aston Villa and Swansea City at Villa Park on January 5, 2019 in Birmingham, United Kingdom. (Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - JANUARY 05: Henri Lansbury of Aston Villa in action with Leroy Fer and Wayne Routledge of Swansea City during the FA Cup Third Round match between Aston Villa and Swansea City at Villa Park on January 5, 2019 in Birmingham, United Kingdom. (Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images) /
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A tweaked hamstring caused midfielder Henri Lansbury to miss Aston Villa’s 2-2 draw with Hull City. It’s been a rough season for Lansbury with three muscle injury relapses in two months.

Henri Lansbury has all the athleticism and quality to excel in Dean Smith’s central midfield. Unfortunately, injuries have decimated his season to date, with the player making just three appearances. To make things even worse, these injuries continue just as Lansbury is about to make a return.

He made his league debut in the 4-2 win vs. Birmingham City, but had to be substituted out after just 8 minutes on the pitch. He returned in January to face Swansea in the FA Cup, but was re-injured shortly thereafter. Now, another hamstring problem forced him to miss Villa’s 2-2 sraw with Hull.

A match in which manager Dean Smith did not call upon a single reserve central midfielder to the bench. Smith instead called upon four forwards in Keinan Davis, Jonathan Kodjia, Anwar El Ghazi, and André Green as Glenn Whelan was dropped from the matchday squad all together. Birkir Bjarnason, Conor Hourihane, and John McGinn got the call to start.

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But from Lansbury’s perspective, these injury woes have to hurt. He has the opportunity to show the manager what he’s capable of with so many players either out with injuries themselves, or simply under-performing.

In midfield specifically, Mile Jedinak and Jack Grealish remain sidelined.

Can he recover and make salvage something of this season?

Absolutely, but he must prove his fitness. This most recent hamstring problem doesn’t sound as serious, and he could be a bench option next weekend vs. Ipswich Town.

Lansbury has 2.5 years remaining on his contract and it is in Aston Villa’s best interest to keep him healthy and engaged in the first-team. Even if Smith does not want the player long-term, an extensive look in matches can give potential suitors something to gauge the player on.

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