Aston Villa could be at a disadvantage on Saturday, with Belgium boss Roberto Martinez revealing that a certain defender is not at 100% fitness.
Bjorn Engels, a key player for VIlla so far this season, was not selected for Belgium’s squad to face San Marino and Scotland in European qualifiers.
Martinez has revealed that the reason for this is because he is not fully fit, even after his great start for Aston Villa.
Twitter: Roberto Martinez (Belgium manager): “Bjorn Engels is not 100% fit and we need some very fit players. It’s a shame b… https://t.co/NZRuvStlwx (@villareport)
Dean Smith did not mention any injuries to the defender in his pre-match press conference, but could Engels be a doubt for the clash with Palace?
Read Crystal Palace’s verdict
This was certainly out of the blue from Martinez, with Smith not mentioning any injury issues for the defender.
Engels has been a big part of Villa’s defensive revival, especially after being poor at the back in the Championship last season.
Losing him would be a big blow, especially with the Belgian and Tyrone Mings developing a decent partnership so far.
However, Mings kicking Engels accidentally in the head could have caused a concussion, that could put him in doubt for the match at Selhurst Park.
