Shorey still adjusting - O'Neill

Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill says Nicky Shorey is taking time to adapt and adjust to life at Villa Park following his long spell with Reading.

The 27-year-old spent over seven years with the Royals before joining Villa in August and has been substituted seven times in his 11 Premier League matches.

"You want players to settle in at once but it doesn't always happen," O'Neill told BBC WM.

"Nicky's used to one team's way of playing and now he has to adjust."

Shorey, who has won two caps for England, was dropped for Villa's win at Arsenal but will return for Saturday's game against Manchester United with Carlos Cuellar out injured.

"It's taking a bit of time but I've no concerns about any of the players eventually coming through"
Villa boss Martin O'Neill

O'Neill is happy there is more competition for places in his squad and is confident Shorey will fully find his feet at Villa soon.

"It's taking a bit of time but I've no concerns about any of the players eventually coming through," he said.

"The idea is that we have competition so that players fell that performances are so important.

"Every team in the Premier League will have a slightly different way of playing and everyone knows what their job is here. We are trying to improve the team in a short period of time."

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