Aston Villa's England U21 international, Gabriel Agbonlahor, is happy to continue as a lone striker in boss Martin O'Neill's 4-5-1 formation. "I have enjoyed playing up front by myself and I think it worked well against Ajax and Wigan," he said.

"Blackburn did very well against us and John Carew's introduction for the second half did have a massive impact in that game.

"John is an integral player at Villa but it's good to have a back-up plan if needed. It's important to have different formations to call upon depending on opposition, injuries and suspensions."

"I am comfortable playing up by myself and I think I have improved in the role since the start of the season.

"It's a tougher role. There's more responsibility and you have to show more for the ball and work very hard. But that's not an issue for me."