Martin O'Neill admits Aston Villa skipper Martin Laursen's knee injury is a game-by-game proposition.

The Villa boss told AVTV: "Martin missed the game on Saturday against Sunderland. He was fit and wanted to come back for the West Bromwich Albion match.

"He had no problems in the first half. I didn't know at the time - but he was feeling a bit sore in the second half. He didn't mention it - but then again, that's typical Martin.

"He got through the game but has felt pretty uncomfortable since.

"He went for some more scans which, at the moment, are a little bit unclear.

"He is certainly frustrated, of course, because he was doing so brilliantly.

"Considering his own injury history, he was going along nicely. Now there is a bit of frustration setting in.

"We will see - we are going to try and manage it. We are not exactly sure at this moment of what his position is. We will try and get him pain-free for the games and see if he is comfortable with that. We will take it on from there.

"Obviously we miss him because he has been such a big player for us."