Aston Villa star Pau Torres could be out of Friday night’s clash against Sheffield United if recent updates prove to be true.
Pau Torres went off in pain late on in the 2-1 victory over Brentford on Sunday and although he was previously just a doubt, that is no longer the case with Douglas Luiz leaking the news that he won’t be available.
When asked about the defender’s condition on a Twitch livestream, Luiz responded in a rather bizarre fashion by admitting there would be no appearance from the Spaniard on Friday night.
He said: “Pau is injured. He’s not ready for Friday,” a response which will have no doubt prompted a meltdown from Aston Villa supporters, who deem him irreplaceable.
How good has Pau Torres been this season?
The former Villarreal centre-back hasn’t missed a single league game this term and has been on the field all but 31 minutes, so if the update provided by Luiz is correct, it’ll be a big blow to Unai Emery.
Hailed as “magnificent” by former Chelsea winger Pat Nevin, Pau has grown into his role as a ball-playing defender in the long-term absence of Tyrone Mings.
This is demonstrated by where he ranks among defenders across Europe’s top five leagues in the past year for his ball-playing statistics.
According to FBref, he places in the top 5% for progressive passes, top 3% for progressive carries and top 2% for successful take-ons.
He is, therefore, so crucial to how his side builds from the back and provides balance to the Villa defence as a left-footed defender.
If he is unavailable for the match against the Blades, Emery will need to reshuffle his backline.
Who should replace Pau Torres v Sheffield United?
Although this news will come as a significant blow to the Spaniard, he does have the personnel to cover him.
The likely impact on the team selection would be Ezri Konsa moving from right-back to centre-back and Matty Cash returning to his full-back spot.
Until recently, Konsa did start the majority of the season as a central defender and has been transformed under Emery, however, the Villa boss could consider throwing Clement Lenglet into the mix.
The Frenchman, who joined on loan from Barcelona in the summer, is yet to feature in the Premier League this term but has shone in the Europa Conference League.
A left-footed centre-back – like Pau – Lenglet should now get his opportunity to thrive against lower-quality opposition in the league after showing his capabilities on the European stage.
Lenglet has averaged a superb pass completion of 93%, recovered 5.4 balls per game won 64% of his duels.
If Emery were to utilise his loan star, who has been lauded as “outstanding” by journalist Sean Walsh, the absence of Pau is the perfect time to unleash him against the Blades.
