Victor Lindelof
Aston Villa defender Victor Lindelöf has revealed his latest injury, to his face, was suffered in a training ground incident.
Fotboll Skanalen report comments from the 31-year-old, who explained why he has worn a face mask during matches.
The centre-back is recovering from a broken nose, the latest issue in a long run of injuries.
Since the 2018/19 season, he has suffered at least one injury every year.
Aston Villa training injury mishap
Fortunately, the injury will not rule him out. That’s a boost for Sweden given he’s captain of the national side and set to start.
Victor Lindelöf has now shared how the incident happened and how his recovery is progressing.
“It’s a bit special, of course. But it’s been almost a week and a half with the mask. It works. I’ve gotten used to it,” he said.
“It was the day before the match against Lille in the Europa League away. In training I got a skull in my nose. It looks completely okay now. It’s subsided and all the bruises are almost gone. It feels good.”
Sweden’s World Cup hopes
While he can play on, the Aston Villa defender could probably have done without the injury before this international break.
Sweden face a crucial playoff to reach the World Cup. They take on Ukraine first in the semi-final before – hopefully – taking on either Poland or Albania in the final.
The 31-year-old is well accustomed to them at this point. Sweden secured a World Cup spot in 2017 against Italy but lost to Poland in 2022. Now they’re hoping for third time lucky, and Lindelöf know what’s required.
“It is difficult to point to one specific thing,” he added.
“Against Italy we defended fantastically well and managed to keep a clean sheet in two games. We fought for our lives to get to the European Championship.
“Against Poland we were a bit sloppy as I remember it. But it is difficult to say exactly what will decide. But you have to have a strong foundation, know what you want to do and be psychologically ready.”
The Aston Villa defender has also made it clear this should be his last World Cup. He added that if Sweden need him in four years then it won’t be a very good sign for the national team.
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