Stiliyan Petrov never lost faith in his ability, even when axed from Aston Villa's first team last season. The Bulgarian international struggled in his first 18 months with Villa after a £6 million move from Celtic in the summer of 2006.

Petrov admitted: "It wasn't a good start for me at Villa. People expected more and I didn't produce which was frustrating for me and for them.

"It was up to me to change people's thinking. I came here as a good player and that was how I wanted people to regard me.

"But I never stopped believing and now I'm showing what I can really do."

Petrov added: "It's important for any player never to lose faith. It's up to every individual to keep his place and for a while last season I was out of the team.

"I was determined it wouldn't stay that way so I just kept working and I waited for my chance. When it came, I knew I had to start proving I could play."