Portsmouth goalkeeper David James isn't surprised by the success of former Aston Villa teammate Gareth Barry.

He said: "Gareth was a tremendous youngster when I was at Villa and being the youngest player to get to 300 Premier League appearances says it all.

"I think the maturity of being Villa captain, and having a decent run with Villa over the last couple of years, has helped him out tremendously.

"I think you can see some progress that Villa are hopefully going to make, and that has given him some encouragement and the performances for England have been excellent.

"I am not surprised with his capabilities and just glad he is consistent enough to keep himself in the frame."