Ashley Young likened to Lionel Messi and Ronaldo by Aston Villa

Dec 13 2008 By Mat Kendrick, Birmingham Mail

Ashley Young celebrates his first goal to make it 1-2.

“You ask how can they improve. They just do . They just get better. They see the game differently than they might have done three games earlier.

“I notice teams now, home or away, the minute Ash picks it up there is double cover. He is a genuine threat and Premier League teams know it.”

O’Neill rejects accusations that Young is a diver and insists most of the skilful left-sided winger’s tumbles are because of fouls.

“I think he plays the game very fairly,” said O’Neill.

“I wouldn’t think there are too many times where he has gone down without being caught.

“You will bring up about three or four examples in the next two months where he has done it, but I think if he has got an opportunity to break clear, I don’t think he invites the challenge to go down.”

Meanwhile, O’Neill has warned that Wilfred Bouma still faces a long road to recovery from his agonising ankle injury.

The Dutch left-back has been sidelined since severely dislocating the joint in July’s Intertoto Cup tie against Odense.

“He will be a little while yet,” added O’Neill. “He is doing pretty well, but I think he will be a distance away yet.”