Alan Hutton has predicted that trouble looms for Aston Villa trio Douglas Luiz, Marvelous Nakamba and Conor Hourihane when John McGinn returns, as reported by Football Insider.

What did he say?

The Scotsman is set to be available for March 21st, as reported by The Telegraph, having made that the target for his return from injury.

This comes with the midfielder, rated at £18m by Transfermarkt, having missed nine Premier League matches so far following a fractured ankle, which was sustained just eight minutes into a 3-1 loss against Southampton.

While fans have seen this as a massive boost, Hutton has suggested that this could spell trouble for some of his teammates: “Look, I think it’s one of those ones when your top players are fit, they play, I think he comes straight back in, as soon as the manager thinks he’s ready to play, he’ll play, I think he gives so much and that is no disrespect to anybody else who’s playing.

“Whether it be Douglas Luiz, Marvelous Nakamba, Conor Hourihane – whoever comes in and plays, everybody knows as soon as he’s fit, he gives so much to the team that when he’s fit he has to play.”

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Limited places

Hutton is correct in saying this, as there are only a certain amount of spaces in the midfield and it is obvious that McGinn gets into the team once he is ready.

Before getting injured, the 25-year-old made 18 Premier League starts, scoring three goals and getting a further two assists, while averaging 1.5 key passes, 2.3 dribbles, 2.5 tackles, 0.9 interceptions and 0.7 clearances per game – indicating just how great an influence he has across the pitch.

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This means that, alongside Danny Drinkwater and Henri Lansbury, the aforementioned trio will find themselves battling for either one or two spots in the team, depending on the formation Dean Smith plays and whether Jack Grealish is used centrally or on the wing.

With Villa in a relegation battle, the midfield men will be keen to play their part to help maintain their Premier League status, but they may have to be patient when McGinn returns.

Meanwhile, Villa fans are split on their young star.