Shorey’s relief at ending Aston Villa exile

Apr 21 2009 By Mat Kendrick

The England international was restricted to UEFA Cup and FA Cup appearances with O’Neill preferring to use Luke Young on the left.

But Shorey insists his long absence from first-team football has made him stronger and given him more determination to succeed.

And the 28-year-old full-back believes it is only a matter of time before he fully gets to grips with the demands of Premier League football again. “It is nice to be playing,” he said. “I haven’t played a lot this season. It’s just nice to be playing a game but that’s just the way it is sometimes. You are not always going to be playing.

“I’ve not gone four months before without playing a league game. It is a new experience.

“You’ve got to take every experience as it comes and it will make you stronger.

“When you haven’t played for a while, it is going to be tough on your fitness levels but I felt alright the last couple of games and, with a few more, I’ll be back up to speed.”

Shorey admits dropping another two points against West Ham has probably ended Villa’s hopes of qualifying for the Champions League.

“We have put in some good performances of late but have just not got the results and it was the same against West Ham,” he added.

“We have got to make sure we try and cut out the sloppy goals.

“It is tough but we will keep on going right to the end.”