Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill is convinced he can help Carlos Cuellar win a Spain cap.

O'Neill said: "Carlos's ambition is to play for Spain. He voiced that when he joined us. Absolutely he did. He thinks he's capable of doing it.

"Only time will tell whether he will but I think he has the ability to do that. Carles Puyol has become a permanent fixture for Barcelona and Spain for years. I think Carlos feels, at the age of 27, he has the time to do so, too.

"He's a defender who has a bit of ability. I saw a lot of his games in European football for Rangers. When he started to come to prominence, we had people take in a lot of their matches.

"From last Christmas onwards we really started taking an interest in him. Rangers going out of the Champions League made their minds up and the lost revenue probably forced the sale. With money being so tight, it influenced them.

"There's always a concern in my mind about Martin Laursen playing all the games, given his past injury problems. Not that Carlos has come in here to think anything other than he will be playing."