Aston Villa fans faced something of a sweat and a degree of worry after £12 million buy Scott Hogan was stretchered off on Monday night after turning his ankle in the 2-0 loss to Newcastle United. However, they can begin to breathe more easily at today’s news.
Just four appearances into his Aston Villa career it was feared that the turned ankle could very well prove to be a season-ending injury for the former Rochdale and Brentford player. It was a sparkling 14 goals in the opening five months of the season from Hogan that saw a tug-o-war between Villa and Premier League West Ham, the Villans eventually getting their man.
When he went over on his ankle, some sources were reporting that Hogan faced an “extended stay” on the sidelines. Villa were awaiting the results of a comprehensive scan on Hogan’s injuries before making any official announcement as to length of time out and the sort. However, in news carried by the Birmingham Mail and via Aston Villa’s official Twitter account (below), the case of an “extended stay” in the treatment room appears not to be the case.
Injury news: Steve Bruce confirms @ScottHogan_9 injury not as bad as first feared – could be out for 4-5 weeks. #AVFC pic.twitter.com/PSN9iyY07U
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) February 24, 2017
Despite real fears that he may not be back in action until the next Sky Bet Championship campaign, the free-scoring forward will only be missing for around five weeks. This means that he could be back in the claret and blue of Villa by the start of April. Villa boss Bruce commented on the scans, revealing the extent to the injury that Hogan suffered.
The Villa boss said: “He’s still got a badly sprained ankle, but thankfully the ligaments aren’t torn or badly ruptured and there’s no break. It’s a big relief for everybody because when he went down and you see people on a stretcher, you think that could be the season, but thankfully he should be OK in the next month or so.”
News of a shortened stay on the sidelines than first thought will be welcome news to Villa fans whose team sit in an uncomfortable 17th place in the Sky Bet Championship table and just six points above the drop zone.
