Aston Villa left-back Lucas Digne drops out of France squad after just one day due to ankle injury
Lucas Digne replaced Theo Hernandez in the France squad on Monday – but he’ll now return to Aston Villa after suffering an ankle injury of his own.
Just 24 hours after being called up to the France squad, Digne has been left heartbroken by an ankle injury that has seen him be replaced by Adrien Truffert in Didier Deschamps’ side.
Digne has appeared in all seven Premier League games this season, but it’s currently unclear whether he’ll return to fitness in time for Villa’s trip to Leeds United on 2 October.
The news was broken by France on Twitter on Tuesday morning, when they posted: “Injured in his right ankle, Lucas Digne drops out and is replaced by Adrien Truffert!”
A selection headache
Should Digne face a long spell on the sidelines, Steven Gerrard faces a number of big decisions for his starting XI against Leeds.
Gerrard was without the injured Matty Cash during his side’s 1-0 win v Southampton last weekend, so instead fieldedf veteran Ashley Young on the right flank.
The obvious fix if Digne remains injured would be to shuffle Young to the left and return the hopefully-fit Cash to the lineup, but Gerrard has clearly been left unimpressed by the Polish international in recent weeks.
Calum Chambers is another option for Gerrard, with the 27-year-old able to play in most positions across the back line.
Either way, Digne’s injury spells bad news for a side already struggling for defensive depth.
Gerrard will be hoping for no further injuries across the international break, with a crucial run of fixtures against Leeds, Nottingham Forest, Chelsea and Fulham on the horizon next month.
In other Aston Villa news, Ty Bracey backs Ashley Young to have a big impact this season