Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill has welcomed the return to full fitness of John Carew.

O'Neill said: "The great thing about it is that John Carew now is getting really properly fit. He played nearly a full game up at Everton in the absence of Emile Heskey in the FA Cup. Now, in the little training sessions that he has been doing recently, he has been really sharp. He is really raring to go, which is great.

"The two goals he has got after coming on as a substitute will also have given him a big boost of confidence. It is great to see him back when, in actual fact, you probably thought tat it might have been really hard work coming back from the injury.

"John coming back and firing and going well with confidence high is great. I think that will be a major boost to us."

O'Neill added: "We have never had this choice before this season. Early on we had John Carew and Gabby who started before John got injured.

"Now Emile Heskey has come in and started very brightly at Portsmouth. Yes, he is feeling his way a little bit but that is not a problem.

"To have the three centre forwards there and available can only boost us from now until the end of the season - if they stay fit."