Birmingham Mail: MARTIN O'Neill believes his Aston Villa side are now playing without fear as they continue their march towards Europe. And he has shrugged off talk about his motivational skills by insisting his high-flying stars are playing with panache because of their performances. "Like anything else it is not just a case of somebody telling them to believe in themselves," O'Neill said. "You have to go out and you have to perform. "The performances themselves will be enough for those players to believe that they can do it." Villa are the third highest scorers in the Premier League behind Manchester United and Arsenal. "Winning consistently and not getting beaten. We have lost one league game in 12 and we have shown that we can attack," says O'Neill. "They are thriving on it players like Ashley Young and Gabby Agbonlahor and I thought Marlon Harewood was brilliant when he came on for us at Arsenal. "We are causing teams problems because we can get at them. "At the minute we are playing with no real fear, which is great considering the stakes are pretty high. That to me is the lovely thing about it. "We are where we are in the table but we are improving and we are capable of causing teams problems - and we caused Arsenal plenty of problems."

Express and Star: Martin O'Neill today insisted Villa are playing without fear and believes the club will be able to sustain Champions League football in the future. Boss O'Neill has been bowled over by the growing belief in the camp that Villa can keep up their run to the end of the season. Villa go into Wednesday's visit of Middlesbrough with one defeat in 12 games and O'Neill believes his side can continue their impressive run. "I'm hoping this football club in the future will be able to sustain things," he said. "All the top four sides have got the necessary equipment and the back-up to do it. "We're causing teams problems because we can get at them. We're playing with no real fear, which is great considering the stakes are pretty high. That to me is the lovely thing about it."

Sporting Life: Captain Gareth Barry has hailed his midfield partner Nigel Reo-Coker as the unsung hero in Aston Villa's push for a European spot. Barry has consistently turned in man-of-the-match performances which have helped Martin O'Neill's side into the top six of the Premier League. But Barry is quick to recognise the contribution of Reo-Coker who operates in a deeper role, which in turn gives him licence to get further forward. The England midfielder said: "We are different sorts of players. Generally Nigel plays a deeper role. "He does get forward a bit but, rather than try and play the killer ball, he will find me and hopefully I can get it up to the other lads. "We compliment each other very well and I think it is going very well. We both work hard to try to get the ball back although Nigel's role is one that won't get him the headlines. "But we all realise Nigel is doing a job for the team and he is not the sort of person to worry too much about not getting the headlines. "As long as he plays well and we pick up points, then that is more than enough for him."

Sky Sports: Gareth Barry feels that Nigel Reo-Coker is the unsung hero behind Aston Villa's fine form this season. The former West Ham midfielder has seen himself deployed in a deeper role this term to accommodate the attacking instincts of Barry and his skipper has been quick to recognise the valuable contribution his team-mate has made. He also believes that Reo-Coker is not the sort of character to crave the limelight and is someone who is prepared to do a job for the team without necessarily receiving many plaudits. "We are different sorts of players," Barry said. "Generally Nigel plays a deeper role. "He does get forward a bit but, rather than try and play the killer ball, he will find me and hopefully I can get it up to the other lads. "We complement each other very well and I think it is going very well. We both work hard to try to get the ball back although Nigel's role is one that won't get him the headlines. "But we all realise Nigel is doing a job for the team and he is not the sort of person to worry too much about not getting the headlines. "As long as he plays well and we pick up points, then that is more than enough for him."

Premierleague.com: Gareth Barry has hailed midfield partner Nigel Reo-Coker as the unsung hero as Aston Villa eye a European spot. Barry has consistently turned in man-of-the-match performances which have helped Martin O'Neill's side into the top six of the Barclays Premier League. But Barry is quick to recognise the contribution of Reo-Coker who operates in a deeper role, which in turn gives him licence to get further forward. The England midfielder said: "We are different sorts of players. Generally Nigel plays a deeper role. "He does get forward a bit but, rather than try and play the killer ball, he will find me and hopefully I can get it up to the other lads. "We compliment each other very well and I think it is going very well. We both work hard to try to get the ball back although Nigel's role is one that won't get him the headlines."

Shropshire Star: Captain Gareth Barry has hailed his midfield partner Nigel Reo-Coker as the unsung hero in Aston Villa's push for a European spot. Barry has consistently turned in man-of-the-match performances which have helped Martin O'Neill's side into the top six of the Barclays Premier League. But Barry is quick to recognise the contribution of Reo-Coker who operates in a deeper role, which in turn gives him licence to get further forward. The England midfielder said: "We are different sorts of players. Generally Nigel plays a deeper role. "He does get forward a bit but, rather than try and play the killer ball, he will find me and hopefully I can get it up to the other lads. "We complement each other very well and I think it is going very well. We both work hard to try to get the ball back, although Nigel's role is one that won't get him the headlines.