Aston Villa's Leon Bailey has expressed his surprise that his first goal of the season has only come in 2025, attributing the delay to a challenging five months plagued by injuries. The Jamaican international, who played a pivotal role in Villa’s successful campaign last season that secured a Champions League spot, has found it difficult to recapture that form this term.
Bailey candidly reflected on his struggles, stating, "I am now feeling great. I did have a groin injury and two hamstring problems. It is common knowledge when a player is stop-start, stop-start with injuries, coming back, your confidence level is hit. It is normal. No player is coming back from injury with their confidence levels over the moon. It is going to take them time." He drew parallels with teammate Jacob Ramsey, who is also recovering: "Look at Jacob Ramsey. He is coming back, now he needs to start finding himself, get some minutes and start building up his confidence. It is like that for every player."
The forward elaborated on how his playing style has influenced his recovery, explaining, "Me, I am a sprinter, a person who makes a lot of runs. And these things happen. We do a lot of work behind the scenes but even while working, you can still be unfortunate. And I have just been unfortunate in the first half of the season. Hopefully we can change that in the second half of the season." He acknowledged that setbacks are an inherent part of football, stating, "It happens to the best of the best. It is football, you just have to accept it, work harder, come back and continue."
Bailey remains committed to contributing to the team, asserting, "I will try to play through and help the team as much as possible. If the coach needs me to be there I will try to be as ready as possible." However, he also recognised the importance of listening to his body, admitting, "Sometimes, you can't. You have to let your body dictate what you can and can't do. Sometimes I am pushing myself too much and need to chill." His resilience is evident as he noted, "I have not missed a lot of games, which is important. I am still showing up for the team. I am not going to dwell too much on the past. I'm back now, off the mark and now I am focused on getting points."
As Aston Villa approaches a critical phase of the season, they currently sit four points behind fourth-placed Chelsea. While the team performed admirably last season, maintaining that momentum has proven challenging this term. Nevertheless, Bailey is optimistic about their prospects for a top-four finish, stating, "Sometimes you struggle. But the most important thing is we are still there."
He emphasised the team’s character, observing, "This is a team showing character and sometimes you have teams who do well one season and fall off completely in the second. We are still there, we are still in the race, still competing to finish in the European positions." Bailey expressed confidence in their ability to progress, remarking, "We are really happy with our process so far but we know we have a long way to go. But we are confident we can be there."
Reflecting on their recent performances, Bailey added, "This was our first win of 2025 and we hope we can get back to where we need to be. The first half wasn't the best part of the season but hopefully we can turn things around and get back to where we need to be." As Aston Villa looks to improve their standing in the league, Bailey's determination and positive outlook will be crucial in their quest for European football.