Aston Villa FC

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Villa boss stands by Knight

25 Oct 2007 - 13:14:59

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Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill has voiced his backing for central defender Zat Knight, who came in for heavy criticism for his performance in the 4-1 defeat by Manchester United.

The 27-year-old has been a regular starter since his summer arrival from Fulham, but calls had been made for him to be given a rest after his below-par display last weekend, with Curtis Davies waiting in the wings.

However, O'Neill said: "Everyone will come in for criticism at certain stages. I'm not going to go down the route of singling out any players.

"Everyone has a responsibility, every time you step on the pitch. In every Premier League game you play, you have a chance of doing well or playing poorly.

"Overall I've been very pleased with Zat. He got into the side a week or ten days before Curtis Davies arrived here and I've been impressed.

"I've been pleased with the efforts of a lot of the team, but we must find a bit more.

"Everybody has to analyse their own game and see how they can improve. That goes for all of us."