Villa skipper no longer guaranteed a place under Houllier
Published 17:21 21/02/11 By James Nursey
Aston Villa boss Gerard Houllier says captain Stiliyan Petrov is no longer guaranteed his place and insists no-one is safe from the axe.
Bulgarian midfielder Petrov, 31, was virtually a shoo-in every week under predecessor Martin O'Neill.
Despite concerns over Petrov's lack of pace, O'Neill gave him a new long-term contract until 2013 worth £54,000-a-week.
But new manager Houllier brought in midfielders Jean Makoun and Michael Bradley in January.
He then omitted Petrov altogether from the squad for Villa's 1-1 draw at Blackpool after he returned from international duty.
And Houllier has now told his entire team to get used to rotation.
Houllier said: "Petrov is in my plans, but if he says I want to play every game - I'll say: 'No'.
"He's the captain so he must lead by example.
"You can play only 11 players at one time but it is the squad and the unity of the squad that makes you win, not just 11 players.
"The players and the fans have to accept now that it is a squad - simple as that.
"When there's no competition the teams go down.
"Every team now when you play games need to have the freshness and when there's an international you need to rest players.
"If you don't accept competition you don't do this job.
"A professional football player is paid a lot of money to be in competition with his team-mates."
