Keinan Davis has revealed he stayed with Aston Villa this season for manager Dean Smith.
Davis was on the scoresheet for Aston Villa's 6-1 Carabao Cup win over Crewe Alexandra.
He said: "In the transfer window he (manager Dean Smith) told me he wanted me to stay, which gave me massive confidence, and now I'm trying to repay him with my performances.
"At the start (of pre-season) I thought about going out on loan, that maybe I wouldn't play as much because I wanted to get as many games as I could.
"But he kept on reassuring me, telling me 'Stay and you'll play'. I had to trust him. He reassured me so it was all good in the end. 'He's given me an opportunity, now I have to prove myself to him."