Leon Bailey set for Villa return today
Published:Sunday | August 29, 2021 | 12:05 AMRobert Bailey - Gleaner Writer
Craig Butler, Leon Bailey’s manager, says he will be back to action for Aston Villa against Brentford in the English Premier League (EPL) today.
Butler says Bailey is now fully recovered from a series of niggling injuries he picked up at the Concacaf Gold Cup earlier this summer.
Bailey missed Villa’s last two matches, a 2-0 victory over Newcastle in the EPL and a 6-0 win over Barrow in the second round of the Carabao Cup this week.
The 24-year-old marked his debut for Villa with an assist as a second-half substitute in a 3-2 loss to Watford in their opening EPL game of the season at Vicarage Road.
“Leon is going to have a wonderful season,” Butler said. “He came back from the national team with a slight niggling injury, and we want to make sure that injury is healed a hundred per cent before he takes the pitch.
“Even though he was not at a hundred per cent, he was able to get an assist on his debut. It is best that [he’s there] for the whole season and give up the first two games than to have him aggravate and make the whole thing worse.”
Bailey joined Aston Villa from German club Bayer Leverkusen for a reported fee of £30 million in July. His contract runs until 2025.
Bailey is coming off his best season, statistically, in Germany, having scored 15 goals and registering 11 assists in all competitions last season. Nine of those goals came in the Bundesliga, matching his 2017-18 season high. Butler said that he is expecting a big season from Bailey because he believes he has all the requirements to become one of the best players in the league.
“He is adapting, he is enjoying England, he is learning England, and he is back in training now and ready to go,” Butler said. “My aim is for him to hit 25 goals this season and get his stats up, but more importantly is to adapt and to become a part of the team, understand their system of play that they are going to be using, and to utilise his skills to help the team reach the top four this season.”
Today’s EPL fixtures:
Man City v Arsenal 6:30 a.m.
Aston Villa v Brentford 9 a.m.
Brighton v Everton 9 a.m.
Newcastle v Southampton 9 a.m.
Norwich v Leicester 9 a.m.
West Ham v Crystal Palace 9 a.m.
Liverpool v Chelsea 11:30 a.m.
Tomorrow’s fixtures:
Burnley v Leeds 8 a.m.
Tottenham v Watford 8 a.m.
Wolves v Man United 10:30 a.m.