Frenchman Mathieu Berson has vowed to tough it out at Aston Villa.
After a summer of confusion, Mathieu Berson is ready to turn his back on a move abroad in order to fight for his place in Aston Villa's side.
A move to Espanyol had seemed on the cards for the unsettled Frenchman, but Berson is ready to return for pre-season training with his sole aim being to gain a place in David O'Leary's starting XI.
Last season saw Berson start only a handful of games, and after considering a move away from Villa Park, it now appears that he is not yet prepared to give up on his Villa career.
Agent Olivier Jouanneaux told the official club website: "Mathieu knows the situation perfectly well and has no problem. His agreement with Villa was that if he could be guaranteed football elsewhere and Villa received a suitable offer, he could go.
"That has not happened. Many clubs have shown an interest, but the market is very slow in Europe this year.
"Hopefully completing a full pre-season will give him the chance to establish himself in the first team. We hope he will not struggle like he did last year."
And Jouanneaux was happy to give Villa manager David O'Leary a small piece of advice on his team selection for next season.
"Maybe he [Berson] could link-up with Eric Djemba-Djemba. They played together successfully more than 50 times in the Champions League and French League, so this could be a solution for Villa. We will see."
