STILIYAN Petrov still has a part to play at Villa although Gerard Houllier has warned his captain he is no longer an automatic starter.

The Bulgarian midfielder was one of the first names on the team sheet during the reign of Houllier’s predecessor, Martin O’Neill.

And either side of a two-month injury lay-off, Petrov tended to be the current boss’s first-choice central midfielder.

But with Jean Makoun and Michael Bradley arriving in January, Houllier now has a wealth of options in the middle of the park.

Petrov was left out of a Premier League squad for the first time by Houllier for the draw at Blackpool despite being fit. Houllier, however, insists the skipper, who is contracted to Villa until the summer of 2013, is still in his plans for the future.

Houllier said: “Petrov is in my plans, but if he says ‘I want to play every game’ I’ll say ‘No’.

“He’s the captain so he must lead by example. I’m very pleased with his attitude.

“He’s been influential in me changing the philosophy that we have here.

“He’s still got a lot to give.”

Houllier has told his players and the supporters to get used to his preference of rotating his squad rather than sticking to the same XI.