Ahead of his side's game against Sunderland, Aston Villa manager, Paul Lambert, has expressed his satisfaction with their recent performances:
"The team was excellent against West Brom, and they have deserved every bit of praise they have been given since Monday night. We were brilliant in the second half and could have actually won the game."
"We are right up there in terms of gaining points from losing position this season, and that speaks volumes about the character of our players."
"There's a good feeling here, and it's been totally different from last season. The points tally is so much better and our defence has tightened up a lot too. We are well ahead of where we were at this time last season."
In his pre-match press conference, Lambert has revealed that he has struggled to predict how well Sunderland will perform against team, because Poyet has only recenlty been appointed:
"It's difficult to judge Sunderland because Gus Poyet has only been in the job for three weeks. They have had a hard start so you never know. It will be tough, they haven't had much consistency over the past year and half so it's difficult to work out how well they will perform against us."
