Looking for guidance on the value of positive thinking? We can recommend just the man.

Having endured the worst possible debut in claret and blue, Curtis Davies might well have feared for his future at Villa Park.

Instead, he confronted his demons, refused to become downhearted - and patiently waited for the opportunity to put things right.

As manager Martin O'Neill has observed, the 22-year-old central defender will never be allowed to forget that he described himself as a "pub player" after his calamitous display when Villa made their Carling Cup exit at the hands of Leicester City in late September.

Little more than three months later, though, he is starting to look good value for the £9m Villa will pay West Bromwich Albion for his services when his loan transfer becomes permanent in the summer.

Offered another chance after Zat Knight was suspended for being sent off at Chelsea on Boxing Day, he scored with a fine header on his first full league appearance for the club at Wigan and has subsequently looked poised and polished alongside Martin Laursen.

Not that he will ever forget that Carling Cup nightmare - or his very public self-assessment.

"I believed in everything I said at that time," he says. "And I also believe in myself when I do well.

"I'm my harshest critic. If you believe you've done well when you haven't, you are never going to improve. That's the way I've always been - it's what my dad taught me."

The Leicester match may have destroyed lesser characters so it speaks volumes for Davies's self-belief that he turned it into a positive rather than allowing it to erode his confidence.

"It was a driving force which was pushing me on, rather than a hindrance. I knew that when I got my next chance, I was going to take because if I had another bad game that could be the end of it for me.

"But I was confident that when I played again I would do well. We won at Wigan and I scored a goal so that made up for the Leicester game.

"It was great to score. I don't get many goals, so to get one on my full league debut in front of all those fans was amazing. It was unexpected but I'll take it!

"It was almost like being at home that day because there were 5,000 Villa fans behind the goal and they made far more noise than the Wigan supporters."

It was only the fifth goal of his professional career, along with two for Luton Town and two for Albion, although he is optimistic of adding more if he can maintain a regular place.

That certainly wasn't the case after he arrived on deadline day last August and then faced what he describes as "a long, gruelling four months waiting for my chance."

"When I came here I had a slight hamstring problem which set me back a couple of weeks," he says. "During that time the lads did well so I couldn't complain at not being in the side.

"But now I've got in and done okay I'm hoping to stay there. With someone like Zat pushing to get back, you are never in a comfort zone so I know I have to do well in every game to keep my place. Hopefully I can establish myself for the rest of the season."

He certainly relishes the prospect of facing Spanish striker Fernando Torres when Villa head for Anfield to take on Liverpool a week on Monday.

In the meantime, of course, his former club Luton are on Merseyside this coming week for a third round FA Cup replay which will be a massive financial boost to the cash-strapped Kenilworth Road club.

Davies certainly hopes so, admitting: "I still have a soft spot for Luton. Myself and a lot of my team-mates from those days have moved on but there are still a lot of people behind the scenes at Luton who did a lot for me.

"It's a vicious circle really. When I was at the club, I got my chance because the club were in administration. If they hadn't been, they would have been able to sign players and not have to look to the youth team. I got my chance because I was the only one left!"

And what about the A-sign with his hands which accompanied the goal at Wigan? It's all about the A-star coaching course, designed to get underprivileged kids off the streets. One of the organisers, Fitz Hall of QPR, is a good friend of Davies, who was only too happy to lend his support.

"Fitz asked me to make the sign if I scored. I didn't expect to, and I might well have forgotten but I was reminded when Titus Bramble did it after putting Wigan in front. I took my cue from Titus!"