Aston Villa have moved to ease fears that central defender Olof Mellberg requires surgery to cure his Achilles problem. The Swedish international has been struggling with the injury for several weeks and was left out of Wednesday's Worthington Cup victory at Oxford so that he could undertake rehabilitation work and rest.
However, Villa remain optimistic that he will be able to continue playing and he is expected to be named in the side for Saturday's Premiership game with Fulham.
"Olof has rested in a bid to improve the situation for Saturday. An operation is not part of our thinking at the moment," said a Villa spokesperson.
Mellberg has been among Villa's most consistent players this season. "He has hardly put a foot wrong for us since he came back from the World Cup finals," admitted Villa boss Graham Taylor.
Filed by Amanda Fennelly
