FOXES ON McGINN HAS TONIC FOR STICKY SPELLS

EGAN: CRITICS FIRED US UP

JOHN EGAN has revealed Sheffield United’s doubters fuel their desire to be successful this season.

The Republic of Ireland star (right) has been a mainstay in a Blades side that have exceeded expectations in their first season back in the big time.

He said: “A lot of people wrote us off at the start of the season.

“A lot of people said we wouldn’t be able to do it in the Premier League – but that just

JOHN McGINN has challenged his Aston Villa team-mates to turn decent 20-minute spells into 90-minute performances on a consistent basis.

Dean Smith’s side didn’t switch on against Chelsea until midway through the first half on Wednesday and, when they did, they looked more than a match for the Blues.

But after the break they went back into their shells and Chelsea took full advantage in a 2-1 win.

McGinn said: “Chelsea deserved to win – they proved how good a team they are.

“We did compete in spells but not over the 90 minutes and we got punished for that.

“We sat off Chelsea a bit too much in the second half and they proved why they deserved the result.

“We’re still a new team with a lot of new signings and we’re now at that 15-game added more fuel to our fire. We’ve got full belief in what we’ve got.

“We’ve believed in ourselves, stuck to our principles and stuck to the way we play. And we’ve improved. We’re improving and getting better.”

Draws with Chelsea, Tottenham and Man United, as well as mark, so you’re really starting to see us gel together.

“Now we have another tough game against Leicester but at Villa Park our record has been great, so hopefully that carries on.”

Today’s visit of Brendan Rodgers’ men comes ahead of a tricky away trip to Sheffield United.

But then it’s Southampton and Norwich at home and Watford and Burnley away over the Christmas period – four games Villa will really target to try to move clear of the relegation zone.

McGinn said: “I know there are a lot of games in the Championship but the Premier League takes it out of you mentally.

“You need to be focused and if you don’t switch on you’re punished several times.

“We know the next two are difficult but no teams are going to want to play us.” victories over Arsenal and Everton, have given Egan and his team-mates a welcomed confidence boost.

But there will be no room for complacency.

“We never rest on our laurels,” Egan said. “That’s key to how we’re going to do. We’ve given ourselves a good platform but there’s a long way to go.”