Aston Villa boss Steve Bruce is hopeful of having Mile Jedinak fit for the start of the Championship season in England despite the Caltex Socceroos skipper undergoing groin surgery last week.
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KEY POINTS
►Jedinak went under the knife to repair an ongoing groin issue, which kept the midfielder out of Australia’s recent FIFA Confederations Cup campaign.
►As a result of the surgery, the 32-year-old missed Villa’s pre-season training camp in Portugal but Bruce is confident he’ll be back amongst the squad soon.
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"Big Mile has had a groin operation so we're waiting on him. He's not here in Portugal,” Bruce said on the club’s website.
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Caltex Socceroos boss Ange Postecoglou will be hoping his skipper is back on the pitch soon, especially with the vital FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Japan (August 31) and Thailand (September 5) fast approaching.
Jedinak won one of Villa’s best players last season, making 34 appearances in all competitions.
And he’ll again be a key figure – along with new recruit John Terry – as the club chases promotion back up to the Premier League.