Allback: I'm No Quitter

Marcus Allback has vowed to fight to keep his Premiership dream alive, but last night admitted he does not want another spell in the Villa shadows.

The Swedish World Cup ace has spent much of his first Villa season on the bench, following a ¢G2million summer move from Dutch outfit Heerenveen.

But he insists he is not about to give up, reflecting: ¡§I¡¦ve never been at a club where I wanted to play well so much. I love it at Villa ¡V it is a fantastic club. But that just makes it tougher to take when I¡¦m left out of things.

¡§The hardest part is that I have never had a five or six game spell to prove to the manager what I can do. The most I¡¦ve had is three starts in a row.

¡§I¡¦m a positive person, but it is hard not to get down when you are not getting chances to play.¡¨

Allback¡¦s attitude has impressed boss Graham Taylor. And the Swede insists he will not be rocking the boat, even if his frustrations continue.

He added: ¡§It¡¦s not nice when you¡¦re not even getting on the bench, but even when I¡¦ve been out of the side completely, I¡¦ve always been there for the team, because I really like the players and the club.

¡§I¡¦ve always been there, cheering the team on, giving the other strikers support at matches. The manager has not had an easy time getting the right combination of strikers, so it has not been easy for him either.

¡§It has been a tough situation for me not playing 90 minutes every game. When I was out of the side I refused to give in. That¡¦s not my style.

¡§In a situation like mine. You either fight ¡V show the manager you¡¦re good enough ¡V or you lie down and die.

¡§Giving up is not an option for me. I have to keep on fighting and I¡¦ve tried hard to learn from this experience.

¡§But I do feel better now I¡¦m back in the first-team squad again. I don¡¦t mind sitting on the bench and not going on, because at least you¡¦re there with a chance."