Aston Villa £22m signing bravely opens up on ‘drinking depression’ after horror injury
Wesley lifts the lid on the traumatic months which followed the devastating injury blow he sustained against Burnley in 2020
Former Aston Villa striker Wesley has revealed he cried for 20 days and turned to drinking after suffering a serious knee injury in the 2-1 win over Burnley on New Year’s Day in 2020.
The Brazilian – who scored his fifth Premier League goal at Turf Moor – was stretchered off with 20 minutes to go after a scissor-like challenge by Burnley’s Ben Mee which resulted in the abrupt end of Wesley’s first season at Villa Park. It was a long road back for the striker, who returned to the matchday squad 480 days later in the 2020/21 season.
Wesley spent time on loan at Club Brugge, Internacional and Levante before leaving Villa in the summer of 2023. He joined Stoke City for the season just gone, but struggled for form and is now searching for a new club.
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Having made a steady start to his Premier League career at Villa after recording five goal involvements in his first 12 games, Wesley was called-up to represent Brazil for the first time. It made the injury he’d suffer just six weeks after making his Selecao debut all the more devastating.
