Aston Villa’s England international wideman Ashley Young has been the centre of attention this week for a number of reasons.

Young was one of the few bright sparks in a dismal England performance in the Euro 2012 qualifier against Montenegro at Wembley this week.

But he came away from the game with a foot injury and he is a doubt for Saturday’s visit to Villa Park of EPL leaders Chelsea. He is hopeful of being fit, however, saying: “One of my boots was ripped but I just carried on. Fingers crossed it will be OK.”

 

Young also came away from Wembley with his reputation, as well as his boot, in tatters after he was accused of diving to try and win a penalty against the stubborn Montenegrins.

Young fell to the floor in a dramatic fashion under a challenge from Miodrag Dzudovic in the penalty area and was booked by German referee Manuel Grafe.

But the 25-year-old protested his innocence, claiming: “I felt there was a foul beforehand in the first phase of play that didn’t get given and I just couldn’t do anything to get out of the way of the player coming in.”

Fellow Villa wideman Marc Albrighton is relishing Saturday’s clash with the reigning EPL champions, especially his battle with Chelsea’s England international left-back Ashley Cole.

Albrighton told the Press Association: “It’s exciting to play against players like Ashley Cole. Every player in that Chelsea team is world-class, and if you can play well against them you can play well against anybody.

Albrighton, himself an England under-21 international, added: “(Cole) might be the best left-back in the world at the moment but I can’t think too much about that. I’ve got to play the game, not the occasion.”

He netted in Villa’s last game before the international break, but ended on the losing side, 2-1 at Tottenham, ending new manager Gerard Houllier’s 100% record since settling into the Villa Park hot seat.

The 20-year-old gave the Villains a first-half lead but he and his colleagues were unable to suppress Spurs’ in-form match-winner Dutch international Rafael Van Der Vaart.

Houllier is looking to his native France to bolster his squad and is in a race with Serie A giants Juventus for the signature of Les Bleus under-21 international Franck Tabanou, according to Tabanou’s agent.

The 21-year-old left winger, who plies his trade in Ligue 1 with Toulouse, said last week: “If this rumour is true I am proud because Aston Villa have been one of the big English clubs for several years.

“Now I play for Toulouse and I don’t think about it too much. But if they make an offer, then we’ll see.”

Houllier also said this week that he will overcome predecessor boss Martin O’Neill’s reluctance to use a squad rotation system.

Villa have finished poorly in recent seasons, and Houllier said: “It’s not my view to use the same eleven players all the time. Sometimes the tactical approach is different so you need different players.”