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Carlo Ancelotti rules Everton midfielder James Rodriguez out of Aston Villa clash
Carlo Ancelotti has that Everton will be without star playmaker James Rodriguez when they visit Aston Villa on Thursday evening due to injury.
Rodriguez has been forced to sit out the Toffees’ past two Premier League fixtures after sustaining a calf issue in the warm-up to their 2-1 defeat at home to Dean Smith’s side earlier this month.
It is the third calf injury to keep Rodriguez out of action, after missing in December and a in March, while a kept the 29-year-old from featuring in November’s 2-1 loss at Newcastle United.
Ancelotti hopes the Colombian’s current issue will not see him make it a trifecta of four-game spells out with calf injuries, as the Italian is hopeful that Rodriguez will be able to feature against Sheffield United on Sunday.
“James will start to train with the team on Friday,” Ancelotti said, via quotes by the Blues’ . “And if the training is good on Friday and Saturday, he will play on Sunday against Sheffield United.
“He is pain-free now, he has no problem, but he hasn’t trained with the squad so I cannot put him at risk tomorrow [against Villa].”
Everton will also be without Yerry Mina due to an that is causing the centre-half some discomfort, while Jean-Philippe Gbamin is the sole long-term absentee as he continues his rehabilitation from a season-ending .
TBR’s view:
While Everton emerged victorious by beating West Ham United 1-0 on Sunday, Ancelotti could have done with Rodriguez’s ability to pull the strings and make things happen with Dominic Calvert-Lewin the Toffees’ most creative player with four key passes ().
Gylfi Sigurdsson also created two goalscoring opportunities at the London Stadium but has not provided an assist in the Premier League in appearances, while Rodriguez has two assists in – coming against Liverpool and Tottenham.
Rodriguez – who Real Madrid icon Fernando Morientes lauds as an ‘extraordinary player’ () – delivering that vital final pass could prove crucial to Everton moving up the table and claiming a European spot, with Ancelotti’s side the outsiders despite having a .