Petrov aims to prove he can last the Premier pace
Friday 26th August 2011, 11:28AM BST.
Skipper Stiliyan Petrov today hit back at his Villa critics and warned ‘don’t write me off’. The midfielder insisted he can still perform in the Premier League ahead of tomorrow’s visit of Wolves.
Villa legend Dennis Mortimer called for Petrov to be stripped of the captaincy before the start of the season, claiming he was too slow to lead the team.
Petrov vowed to prove his doubters wrong after the stinging assessment, in which 1982 European Cup winning skipper Mortimer branded him just a “Steady Eddie”.
He said: “It wasn’t the best thing, but everybody’s got an opinion. There’s nothing I can do about it. People can talk about it, everybody’s got a different view but that’s football. I’ve been through a lot in my career and people have tried to write me off.
“But I’m still standing and trying to stay strong and I hope I can keep going for the next couple of years.”
But the Bulgaria international admitted he isn’t surprised about his influence being questioned as he gets older. He said: “That’s the way it goes when you get to 32. People start doubting you and asking about your fitness.
“It does hurt, but it’s even better when you prove them wrong. It happens all around football, but it is up to us as players to stand up and show people they’re wrong.
“It’s not about age. If you can keep fit and play well you will be in the team.”
Petrov initially struggled at Villa Park following his £6.5m switch from Celtic in 2006 but scooped Player of the Year in 2009. And he said, under another new manager, he must re-invent himself again.
“Alex McLeish wants me to do something different. People don’t realise that at Celtic I was playing a different position to here,” he said. “Martin O’Neill put me in a different position. We had a lot of forward players for me it was about keeping possession for the team.”
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