Warnock is striving to keep Villa above water

Villa fans might have that sinking feeling but Stephen Warnock is ready to draw on his experience of relegation battles to keep the claret and blues afloat.

The pressure continues to mount on beleaguered boss Alex McLeish with Villa three points above the relegation zone ahead of a crunch game against Albion at The Hawthorns.

Many supporters already feel McLeish's position at Villa has become untenable after a season in which they have won just seven of their 35 Premier League matches.

Despite the manager's uncertain future the claret and blues would go a long way towards securing their safety with a win over the Baggies.

And Warnock, who was involved in a battle to beat the drop with his former club Blackburn, is hopeful his familiarity with the difficult situation Villa find themselves in can help steer some of the more inexperienced players through choppy waters.

"I've been there with Blackburn a couple of years ago where we had to fight for it. It's a real test of character and we have to stand up and be counted now," said Warnock.

"James Collins has been through it at West Ham and Emile Heskey has been through it at Wigan, but that's pretty much it. There's only myself, James and Emile who have been in this situation and it's not a nice situation to be in. We need fighters now.

"It was the same when I was at Blackburn. I wasn't one of the older players but I was classed as a senior player because of the amount of games I'd played. Although it's not easy for the senior lads.

"You try and inspire the team and get around the young lads and help them out. I'll be doing the same again and so will big Emile and Richard Dunne when he is back."

After Albion, Villa face a home game against Champions League chasing Tottenham before a tricky trip to Norwich on the final day of the season.

But Warnock, who was pressed into service as an emergency central midfielder in the 2-1 defeat to Bolton, is eager for Villa to take a giant stride towards safety against Roy

Hodgson's side despite the fact they face the challenge with an injury-hit team filled with youngsters.

"We need three points against Albion. It's a huge game, it's a must-win game and we've got to go there and win, it's as simple as that," explained Warnock.

"I think we can only just look at the game at the weekend. You can't think about what happened last season. We had different players last season, it's a completely different team.

"We need experience, we need confidence, we need people who want to play and get on the ball and win games.

"Sometimes there is no fear with young lads and they might not realise the situation we are in. Hopefully we can come through it and they will grow from it.

"We created chance after chance against Bolton. I'm not having a go at the strikers because it's a team game, but we need to be more clinical in front of goal as well."

Meanwhile, Villa boss McLeish has urged disgruntled fans to put aside their personal opinion of him and get behind the team for the good of the club.

"They can have the power to galvanise the players and I thought they were excellent against Bolton, it just turned but I couldn't say I didn't expect that to happen," said McLeish.

"They love Aston Villa and they have got to show their love for the club and give the players the power to get the extra energy to fight these challenges coming up."