Stiliyan Petrov

Stiliyan Petrov had somewhat of an up-and-down campaign in claret and blue during 2010-11, missing three months with a knee injury before regaining his place, losing it again and winning it back over the final seven games.

That final spell of matches heralded an impressive 14 point haul and helped Villa charge up to ninth in the final top-flight table.

But their position looked precarious before Petrov's re-emergence - and there's no question his renaissance was extremely significant to Villa's fortunes.

He can look forward to the 2011-12 campaign with fresh vigour now, with a name from his past at the helm.

When Petrov was making waves at Celtic, Alex McLeish was pushing Rangers on to titles too.

Petrov is a big fan of McLeish for his "winning mentality" and there's no question captain and boss could be a dynamite double act in the claret and blue dressing room.

After making a slow start to life in claret and blue, the Bulgarian set about becoming a standout figure in the starting line-up.

Petrov followed up a fantastic 2008-09 campaign - which saw him walk away with Players, Supporters and Lions Club Player of the Year awards - by taking on the captaincy and leading the team out at Wembley on two occasions.

He relished the responsibility of being a leader since receiving the armband in the wake of Martin Laursen's retirement.

Having signed from Celtic in 2006 and reuniting with Martin O'Neill, Petrov initially struggled to reproduce the sort of form that made him a star north of the border.

But things started to change from the moment Petrov scored from centre-circle in a 6-0 win over Derby County at Pride Park in April 2008 - a strike which won him Match of the Day's Goal of the Month award, plus Villa's Goal of the Season.

Since then, he has emerged as one of the most effective middle men in the country.

The inspirational skipper is still going strong at international level too and has blasted past the 100-cap mark for Bulgaria - an outstanding achievement.