Aston Villa Football Club News

• Nickname:The Villains
• Founded:1874
• Manager:Alex McLeish

• Ground:Villa Park
• Capacity:42,584

O'Neill confirms Carew blow

25 Sep 2007 - 12:48:34

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Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill has confirmed that striker John Carew will be out for around six weeks due to the knee injury he suffered in the 2-0 victory over Everton.

The 28-year-old Norway international scored against the Toffees before being forced to leave the pitch due to the problem, which has been diagnosed as ligament damage.

O'Neill told the club's official website: "At this minute he has definitely got a ligament problem and we're looking at maybe four to six weeks.

"It came as he was stretching for a ball. Somebody fell on top of him and he twisted it.

"It's a blow because he's a key player for us, but this is going to happen during the course of a season and you have to cope with it. It's now all about players coming in, doing well and staking their claim.

"Even when Carew wasn't scoring goals I still think he was a handful for the opposition. Opposing managers and backroom staff would all say he caused big problems.

"His confidence was up from getting the goal - that was a big relief to him. But we have had to do without him before and at crucial times last season.

"The game at Blackburn Rovers I remember in particular. We will probably end up playing differently again, but we are capable of doing that."