Digne, Ramsay, Torres: Aston Villa injury list and return dates ahead of Chelsea FA Cup clash

Aston Villa will be hoping to continue a fine campaign under Unai Emery by booking their place in the FA Cup fifth round this weekend. The Villans travel to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea on Friday evening, knowing that a spot in the last 16 of the historic competition awaits the winner.

Villa head into the clash having beaten Middlesbrough in the third round, but having also dropped points against Everton in their most recent Premier League outing. For their part, Chelsea face a Carabao Cup semi-final second leg against Boro on Tuesday evening, and cruised past Preston North End in their last FA Cup clash, scoring four without reply.

In the Premier League, Villa are ahead of the Blues by 12 points and five places, but could be without a number of key players for their trip to the capital on Friday. We've taken a look at the latest injury news, and potential return dates where possible, below...

Emiliano Buendia

One of Villa's long term absentees, Buendia is not expected to feature again this season having suffered a serious knee injury last year. His rehabilitation continues for now, but it could be some time before we see him back in contention.

Tyrone Mings

A very similar situation to Buendia, Mings is sidelined with a knee injury, and isn't set to feature for quite some time. The towering defender is likely to be ruled out for the remainder of the campaign.

Lucas Digne

The French full-back is currently battling a thigh injury, and while his return is expected sooner rather than later, Friday's trip to West London may come slightly too soon. Perhaps a more realistic target is the Premier League clash with Newcastle United the following Tuesday.

Pau Torres

Another defender battling injury, Torres recently returned to full training, and could be back in line to feature against Chelsea this weekend. His ankle complaint appears to have cleared up, and Emery should be able to hand him a spot on the bench, at least.

Jacob Ramsay

Ramsay sustained a hamstring injury in training earlier this month, but the understanding is that it was not a particularly serious problem, and that he too could make his comeback against Chelsea. Speaking about the midfielder, Emery said: 'At the end of the session yesterday, he was not feeling very good; he had some pain in his hamstring. We didn't take a risk on him. We will take a test on him. If he has an injury, we hope it's not a lot.'

Robin Olsen

Unlikely to start even when fit, Villa's substitute goalkeeper should be back in line to take up his customary role as understudy this weekend. Speaking prior to the stalemate with Everton a fortnight ago, Emery said: 'Robin Olsen is coming back; he trained yesterday and today with us. Tomorrow, if everything goes well, he is available.' Evidently, that didn't happen, but this weekend, he could finally make his comeback.

Bertrand Traore

Traore is away at the African Cup of Nations with Burkina Faso, and could be away for a while longer if his side can force their way into the knockout stages of the competition. They are currently on course to do so, with a clash against Angola to navigate on Tuesday evening, but regardless, it is unlikely Traore will feature on Friday even if he and his peers do crash out.