Brad Guzan finally got his break in England, and he has been making the most of it, earning praise from Aston Villa manager Alex McLeish for his work in goal while Irish international Shay Given was sidelined with a hamstring injury. Guzan has played so well that the 35-year-old Given is not certain to regain his starting job.

McLeish faces a tough decision over who to pick in goal now that Given is healthy again. "There are no guarantees of that obviously because of the way Brad has played," McLeish told AVTV. "Shay is not far away. He's champing on the door to be involved this weekend against Everton. Whether he is going to make it, we will have to wait and see. I can't give you that news at the moment."

Given had stepped into the starting job after moving over from Manchester City when Brad Friedel left for Tottenham, leaving Guzan in the role of the backup once again. McLeish has praised the 27-year-old Guzan, who lived up to his reputation as a superb penalty-stopper, saving a penalty in the FA Cup win at Bristol Rovers.

"Brad has been fantastic," said McLeish. "I felt great for him when he made that penalty save against Bristol Rovers in the last game although I was gutted for him that he didn't get the shutout. I know all goalkeepers crave clean sheets. It is always a gold star for the goalkeeper when there's a shutout but unfortunately we let a goal in. But what a fantastic save for the penalty. The experts we have here -- like coach Terry Gennoe -- tell me that Brad has a great record when it comes to penalties."