Aston Villa Football Club News

• Nickname:The Villains
• Founded:1874
• Manager:Alex McLeish

• Ground:Villa Park
• Capacity:42,584

O'Neill expects Heskey stay

03 Jan 2010 - 12:06:12

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Aston Villa manager Martin O'Neill has again insisted that he has no plans to sell England striker Emile Heskey in the January transfer window.

The 31-year-old has been linked with a number of other Premier League sides, including former club Liverpool, but O'Neill is not set to agree to any deal.

He said: "I don't know why Emile Heskey's name has been brought up, but January's a long time.

"I wouldn't really want to sell players at the football club and that would really be it, but I wouldn't have a clue what might happen in January at this stage."

Meanwhile, O'Neill praised both Nathan Delfouneso and Fabian Delph for their performances in the 3-1 FA Cup third round win over Blackburn Rovers.

He added: "Nathan started very brightly and got the goal he was capable of. There's much more to come from him.

"I don't see why Delfouneso should not be the fourth striker in our squad. I think he's got a really good future.

"I thought Delph's first-half performance was excellent. I wouldn't have given him a chance of playing last night, because he's been ill for the last two days.

"He declared himself fit and wanted to play. He wasn't too well at half-time but I thought his contribution was excellent."