O’Neill Factor Convinced Barry

Gareth Barry has admitted that if David O’Leary had stayed as manager, he would most probably have not stopped as a player.

The 25-year-old midfielder, who put pen-to-paper on a new four year deal this week said: “I`d virtually asked the club for a move. I`d made my decision before David O`Leary got the sack. Then he got sacked and I was in no man`s land. The club just wanted me to hold on and wait for the new manager and, thankfully, it was the right thing to do. I thought I had to move on for the sake of my career. But I saw the reception when Martin was appointed and it started me thinking ‘Is it the right thing to move on?`’

It then took the ‘O’Neill factor’ to persuade him his future lay at Villa Park.

“I had a few conversations with the manager and he slowly changed my mind. He has said all the right things. He is the sort of man you can listen to and take it in. He has always got the best out of his players. He can get the average players playing good and good players playing great. That`s a sign of a good manager.”

It also looks like the dressing room is a completely different place with Barry saying O’Neill is ‘like a breath of fresh air’ adding “I can`t remember so many positive vibes, certainly not in the last four or five years.