Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill says his young players will benefit from a season in Europe.

"If we can get through the Intertoto and into the UEFA Cup it could be great experience for our players," he said. "If we can get through to the group stages, where you can take stock a little bit, that would certainly be the case.

"I think Everton would say they're much better equipped for Europe next season as a result of their terrific run this year and the experience gained from that.

"I saw that at Celtic with a number of players. Stiliyan Petrov was only a young player when we had the UEFA Cup run through to the final in 2003 and he grew in stature as the competition went on.

"Hopefully we can see the same with our young players. The likes of Gabby Agbonlahor and Ashley Young can only benefit for that experience as they continue to develop as players."