Sidwell hungry for Europe success

New Aston Villa signing Steve Sidwell is hoping the Intertoto Cup will provide him with a chance to showcase his skills in Europe after a season in the shadows at Chelsea.

Villa take on Danish outfit Odense BK at their Fionia Park ground on Saturday knowing a win would take them one step closer to qualification for the UEFA Cup.

Sidwell found first-team opportunities hard to come by at Stamford Bridge and the midfielder played only six minutes of European football last season.

Martin O'Neill ended his summer-long pursuit of Sidwell last Thursday when he signed the 25-year-old for £5m.

The former Arsenal trainee now hopes to use his brief experience in European football to his advantage.

The former Reading player told www.avfc.com: “Playing in Europe for any team is a massive thing for any player and any club.

“I had a taste of it in the Champions League last season with Chelsea and I’d love to play a big part in a UEFA Cup run with Villa.”

The former Arsenal trainee dismissed fears that taking part in the cup would tire the squad out.

“It makes it a long season ahead but I missed a lot of football last season so I’m just happy to be out on the pitch playing again and I’m looking forward to every single game,” he said.

“We’re working very hard in training to make sure we don’t get caught cold on Saturday.”

Sidwell set up John Carew to score Villa’s only goal in their 3-1 friendly defeat to Lincoln City at Sincil Bank last night.