Aston Villa caretaker boss Kevin MacDonald has warned his side that there can be no more excuses following their poor start to the season.
Villa have lost their last six matches on the spin in the Premier League, which resulted in the sacking of Tim Sherwood last week.
Pundits have said that the number of signings the club made over the summer could be the reason for their struggles, but MacDonald is adamant that is not the case due to his own experience from his playing days.
He told reporters: "We keep making excuses for them, you can't keep making excuses. They are professional footballers who are getting well paid in the Premier League. There are no excuses.
"People say give them seven months. When I came down from Scotland all those years ago you were given three weeks. Jock Wallace said to me 'three weeks Kevin, get yourself fit and if you're the best player, you're in the team'.
"That's the way I worked before. If you are the best player in training, you get the chance to be the best player on the pitch. If you're the best player on the pitch you stay in the team, that's what's going to happen here."
Villa are bottom of the Premier League ahead of their clash against Tottenham Hotspur on Monday.
No Data Analysis info
Germany
Switzerland
Hungary
Scotland
Spain
Italy
Croatia
Albania
England
Denmark
Slovenia
Serbia
Austria
France
Netherlands
Poland
Romania
Belgium
Slovakia
Ukraine
Portugal
Turkey
Georgia
Czech Republic