Aston Villa defender Lucas Digne has suffered a ‘possible stress fracture’ to his right ankle, according to L’Equipe.

The Lowdown: Injury issues

Steven Gerrard has had a number of injury problems to deal with this season, with many coming at the back.

Marquee summer signing Diego Carlos ruptured his achilles tendon in August while Matty Cash missed the win over Southampton with a hamstring issue.

Defensive midfielder Boubacar Kamara suffered an injury of his own against the Saints that has ‘worried’ Gerrard, and fellow countryman Digne is also now set for a spell on the sidelines.

The Latest: Digne update

L’Equipe provided an update on the extent of Digne’s injury after it emerged he was ruled out of France’s UEFA Nations League clashes with Austria and Denmark.

They claimed that ‘initial examinations revealed a possible stress fracture’ of the right ankle, which would rule him out for several weeks.

The Verdict: Never ending

Villa can’t catch a break when it comes to injuries, and it looks as if Digne will spend a somewhat lengthy spell out, should this claim prove accurate.

Many ankle stress fractures heal in a four to six-week time period, so Digne could miss all of October should it push towards a six-week absence.

That would rule the left-back out of a busy month with Villa set for six Premier League fixtures and may damage his chances of a spot in France’s World Cup squad.