ASTON Villa manager Dean Smith refused to give specifics but admitted that his side have been hit by Covid concerns while Danny Ings was a surprise absentee from the squad.

Villa travel to St Mary’s to take on Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side on Friday, in what would be former talisman Danny Ings’ first return to the south coast.

The 29-year-old striker exited Saints in incredible fashion with a £30million move that was announced as Hasenhuttl’s team were preparing for a pre-season friendly with fans inside the stadium.

The former England international has played nine games in the Premier League for Villa this season and netted on three occasions, including a superb acrobatic bicycle kick.

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But having started every game, he was then not named in the squad as West Ham completed a 4-1 rout at Villa Park on Sunday.

Daily Echo: West Ham dismantled ten-man Villa 4-1 (Pic: PA)West Ham dismantled ten-man Villa 4-1 (Pic: PA)

It was a fourth consecutive defeat for Villa as the pressure is ramped up on the manager to turn around their poor run of form.

"We had to shuffle the pack a little bit," Smith said, asked about the notable absentees in his side before the game.

"We’ve had some forced pull-outs as well, I won’t go into specifics but a few soft-tissue injuries and a couple of Covid related issues.

"We’ve had to adjust it somewhat."

As of yet, it is unclear if Ings’ absence is explained by a soft-tissue injury or a Covid related concern.

Daily Echo: Danny Ings has had his fair share of injury concerns throughout his career (Pic: PA)Danny Ings has had his fair share of injury concerns throughout his career (Pic: PA)

However it could throw his return to St Mary’s into jeopardy, if he remains unavailable for selection particularly with the match coming a day earlier on Friday, November 5.

It is expected that we will get confirmation of his potential involvement during the pre-match press conferences that will take place later in the week.