Source: Team_Talk
O'Neill insists Petrov's staying put
Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill has dismissed reports linking Stiliyan Petrov with Liverpool but is none the wiser about James Milner's future.[LNB] Speculation has suggested that Reds boss Roy Hodgson has identified the Bulgarian midfielder as a potential new recruit at Anfield.[LNB]The 31-year-old has been a virtual ever-present for Villa since joining from Celtic in 2006 and has not looked out of place among the Premier League elite.[LNB]An accomplished performer throughout his career, it is no surprise to hear that he is now attracting interest from the likes of Liverpool.[LNB]O'Neill admits as much, as he is full of praise for the work Petrov does at Villa, but insists he has no plans to part with his club captain.[LNB]He told Villa's official website: "There was a story that appeared in the newspapers that Liverpool were about to pounce and Stiliyan was going to be the player they would want to replace (Javier) Mascherano.[LNB]"Stiliyan has been absolutely fantastic for us in the last couple of years and - please don't take this as if I'm inviting offers, I'm not - but I'm not surprised that teams are interested in him.[LNB]"I haven't spoken to Paul (Faulkner) or Randy (Lerner) for a day or two, but there's nothing in the story and if you look at the source, I wouldn't hold phenomenal store by it.[LNB]"But that doesn't mean that teams like Liverpool wouldn't be interested in him because he's a top quality player. But as we speak, no-one from Liverpool has contacted us."[LNB]Meanwhile, O'Neill has admitted that he is uncertain as to where Villa stand in their efforts to keep James Milner at the club.[LNB]Manchester City remain keen on the England international and talks regarding a possible agreement are ongoing.[LNB]O'Neill said: "I've left that with the chief executive and the owner and I'm sure that they'll fill me in with what might have developed.[LNB]"I think that there is some sort of dialogue going on and I think that you can see that Manchester City have made an offer which has not been accepted and it hasn't reached the valuation that Aston Villa are putting on James.[LNB]"Who knows what might happen in the foreseeable future? The answer is I'm not sure myself."
