Aston Villa: Unai Emery hit by new blow ahead of Ajax clash as Jacob Ramsey update emerges
Aston Villa are looking to get back to winning ways after a disappointing 4-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League at Villa Park on Sunday (10 March).
Unai Emery’s side were torn apart by Spurs as they failed to thwart Ange Postecoglou’s attacking talent, with second-half goals from James Maddison, Brennan Johnson, Son Heung-min and Timo Werner proved to be the difference between the sides.
While Villa were far from their best, they did have to contend with a couple of huge absentees, most notably Jacob Ramsey who was missing from Emery’s matchday squad having picked up an injury against Luton Town.
While the Villa boss insisted that the 22-year-old wouldn’t be rooted to the treatment table for too long, Emery has revealed that Ramsey will not be fit to feature in the Europa Conference League showdown with Ajax on Thursday 14 March.
As quoted by Birmingham Live on Wednesday (13 March) he said: “He is still not available, but hopefully not for a long time. We are going to wait every day to see how he is feeling but he will not be available tomorrow.”
Will Jacob Ramsey be fit for Aston Villa to face Ajax?
Ramsey has been crucial to Emery’s side this season and in his last full match for the Villans, he proved to be instrumental as Villa claimed all three points against Nottingham Forest with an excellent attacking display.
The 22-year-old created three goalscoring chances for his teammates, more than any player on either side and managed to pick up the assist for Douglas Luiz’s first goal as he completed 88 per cent of his 40 attempted passes, according to Fotmob.
Five of those passes found a teammate in claret and blue in the final third, but the midfielder also showed that he can be a goal threat himself as he had two efforts on goal as he looking to add to his tally for the season.
With the ball at his feet, Ramsey continued to be hard to stop, completing 100 per cent of the dribbles he attempted against Nuno Espirito Santo’s side as a key part of Emery’s quick, counter-attacking style at Villa Park.
When compared to other midfielders in the Premier League, the 22-year-old completes more progressive carries a game than 91 per cent of his peers, with an average of 3.48 progressive dribbles per 90 minutes, according to Fbref.
A huge amount of those carries see the Villa gem make his way into the final third, as he places in the 92nd percentile of Premier League midfielders for progressive dribbles into the opposition box per 90 minutes.
Ramsey may only place in the 59th percentile of midfielders for assits per 90 minutes, but the midfielder sits in the 74th percentile for expected assists per match, suggesting that he is creating chances that aren’t being taken by his teammates.
Will Unai Emery be able to qualify for the Champions League this season?
The worrying thing for Villa fans will be the fact that Emery didn’t confirm whether Ramsey will be fit to face West Ham in the Premier League on Sunday (17 March) in what could be a crucial game for the race for the top four.
Spurs play Fulham on Saturday (16 March) and could well be above Villa by the time they face the Hammers.
While the likes of Morgan Rogers and Moussa Diaby could step up, it could be a huge blow to Emery’s hopes in the Conference League and the Premier League if the 22-year-old remains on the sidelines.
In other Aston Villa news, Matty Cash faces a “sink or swim” summer at Villa Park amid new transfer links in Emery’s squad
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