O'Neill keen to keep full-back

Martin O'Neill believes that Nickey Shorey still has a part to play at Aston Villa but only if he is prepared to fight for his place.

The former Reading defender looked set to complete a season-long loan move to Portsmouth on transfer deadline day, only to reject the transfer to Fratton Park at the last minute.

Following the signing of Stephen Warnock from Blackburn, Shorey's place in the side looked to be under threat, but O'Neill insists the former England international is still in his plans for the forthcoming season.

"Does Shorey have a part to play? Of course. I think Nicky and his agent pre-empted things a little bit by thinking he was not going to play," O'Neill told the Birmingham Mail.

"I had certainly not been pushing him out but something came up and they wanted to explore that. I gave them that opportunity but it didn't come off.

"Nicky wants to come back here and really fight for a place in the side. We have Warnock and then Freddie Bouma to come back so there's options which will be very important between now and January."