Ian Maatsen injury timeline revealed after 'awful' Aston Villa blow in defeat vs Nottingham Forest

Ian Maatsen is set for a prolonged period on the sidelines for Aston Villa.

The 24-year-old had been emerging as Unai Emery's starting left-back following Lucas Digne's summer exit.

As a result, this season is a hugely important one in the trajectory of his Villa Park future.

It feels like 2026-27 is the Dutchman's big chance to really cement his role as a long-term starter for the Villains.

Indeed, only 17 of his 30 Premier League appearances last season came as part of the starting XI.

But after suffering an injury against Nottingham Forest on Saturday, Maatsen has been dealt a troubling prognosis.

What type of injury is Ian Maatsen feared to have?

As the clock ticked around to the 80th minute in Villa's 2-1 defeat to Forest, Maatsen was hacked down by James McAtee.

Emery had already used all of his substitutions at this stage, but Maatsen was unable to continue and forced the Villains to go down to 10.

Naturally, Forest's winning goal would come down Villa's left side afterwards.

No official word has yet been spoken on the length or nature of Maatsen's injury, as Villa await scans and tests.

Detailing on X, Football injury analyst Physio Scout - who has over 84,300 followers - has explained the most likely injury Maatsen has suffered.

"Awful hip-drop type mechanism from McAtee, with Maatsen’s ankle trapped underneath and forced into eversion/external rotation," they wrote.

"This mechanism raises concern for a syndesmosis/high ankle sprain.

"Expected recovery time: Moderate-grade syndesmosis: four–six weeks. High-grade syndesmosis: eight-10+ weeks w/surgery. Syndesmosis + fracture: 12+ weeks."

So, just how well had Maatsen started the 2026-27 season and what does BBC Match of the Day pundit Ashley Williams make of the incident?

Where Maatsen ranks amongst best Premier League left-backs this season

Maatsen is somewhat of a divisive figure amongst Villa fans, as his tendency for inconsistent displays make him highly frustrating at times.

As per FotMob, however, he ranks in the top 5.7 percentile of all Premier League left-backs for his seven interceptions and 35 kilometres per hour top speed this season.

On top of that, he also places in the leading 9.4 per cent for his 64 total sprints, as well as the top 15.1 per cent for his 0.45 expected assists.

Maatsen is also well above average for his 60 per cent long ball accuracy, five shots, 10 touches in the opposition box and 24 defensive contributions.

Many will feel that McAtee was lucky not to be shown red for his foul on Maatsen, but speaking on BBC's Match of the Day, Williams disagrees.

"No. I think a yellow is fair," he said. "It is a bad challenge. A silly challenge from McAtee.

"I can understand Unai Emery being upset about this a little bit. I think a yellow is probably right.

"But saying that, we have seen red cards for tackles like that."