Aston Villa F.C

Joachim injury worry - 14 Oct

   Villa striker Julian Joachim is facing a battle to be fit for Monday's clash with Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.
   The former England under-21 international, who opened the scoring for Villa in their 3-0 Worthington Cup success against
    a second string Manchester United side at Villa Park last night, has an ankle injury.

He was forced off after 57 minutes of the clash and left Villa Park on crutches.

The former Leicester City ace, who has scored four goals so far this season, will now undergo intensive treatment with the
Villa physiotherapist Jim Walker in a bid to ensure that he will be available to make the long trip to the North East.

If Joachim is sidelined then John Gregory could well hand a call-up to England under-21 international striker Darius Vassell.
The former Villa trainee has made a sooner than expected return to action after a hamstring strain.

He went on to take over from Joachim against United and is now on alert to start the game against Sunderland alongside
Dion Dublin in the Villa attack.

The injury to Joachim took the shine off Villa's victory. Despite the fact that Villa had won 3-0, Gregory felt that the margin
of their success should have been far greater.