Aston Villa's Luke Young - we can still get fourth spot
“The annoying thing about last weekend was that the game was so comfortable and we switched off at the end.
“Looking at the league table now, those two points would have been vital for us. On the back of the cup exits at Everton and Moscow we are in a little bit of a rut because we are not winning games.
“We need to put that right as soon as possible and hopefully we can recharge our batteries
on this break and come back stronger for the next ten games.”
Young says a full squad is vital for the run-in.
He added: “We need everyone fit. We’ve got a few lads coming back.
“Martin Laursen will soon be coming back into the frame and Freddie Bouma is close to returning.
“We need as many players fit as possible. We just need to get back to what we were doing at the start of the season – everyone playing for each other and everyone getting forward and attacking teams and playing with freedom.”
Young says Villa’s 11-day break before the visit of Tottenham is a welcome boost.
“It’s been a long season and I am looking forward to not having a game because for the last couple weeks it has been a game every three days.
“Personally, I felt leggy out there last night. That’s not an excuse but I think it will do us some good having a bit of a break.
“Hopefully we can come back and start putting in performances like we did earlier in the season.”
Young had no excuses for Villa’s inept first half at City.
He said: “We didn’t get out of the blocks.
“We weren’t on the front foot enough with our defending and gave them too much space which they exploited.
“The one thing you do when you go away from home is make sure you start well and match them but last night, for whatever reason, we didn’t do that.
“We allowed them into the game and for the first 10-20 minutes it was all too easy for them. They gained a lot of confidence from that, their crowd got up then it was difficult to turn it around.
“But second half we gave it a right good go.”
