Laursen Hails Davies

Martin Laursen has hailed the attitude and determination of Curtis Davies for the way he has returned to action two months ahead of schedule.

Laursen believes Davies is now seeing the benefits of a long hard summer at Bodymoor Heath, as against all the odds he has continued as first choice partner alongside Laursen.

Speaking on the official site, Laursen said:

'I'm really pleased for him. It must be a great satisfaction for him to have played the first game of the season. I'm sure he didn't think he could do that but he has worked so hard in the gym and he's done very well.

'It's hard to do rehab in the gym, I know that myself. But when you think of the satisfaction you get when you play these games then it makes you train hard in rehab.

'I'm sure Curtis thought about that when he trained so hard all summer. Knowing what a great feeling it would be to play again in the Premier League has been a great motivation for him.'

Whether or not Davies continues tomorrow against Stoke is still open for debate, but Laursen insists the Villa will not be underestimating our Pottery based opponents.

'They lost their first game up at Bolton last weekend so they will be looking for a good start to the season at home. It will not be easy, we know that.

'But every game in this league is difficult. The approach of the game is everything. If we concentrate and pay them the respect they should have then we've got a good chance to do well. But we still need to really be focussed and full of concentration.'

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