Gabriel Agbonlahor determined to regain local hero status at Aston Villa The forward is expected to retain his place for the derby against West Bromwich Albion on Sunday and is on a mission to wipe away two seasons of underachievement and lead his beloved Villa towards less turbulent times. He said: "It's been difficult for the club because once Martin left it was a tough season with the new manager coming in. The following season was tough too. It was always going to be difficult with the excitement of the seasons before, where we did so well in the league. I don't want to keep bringing up the past, but a few seasons ago we had good players with the likes of Darren Bent coming in and Ashley Young playing just behind him so it was hard to get into the team. Last season there was a bit of rotation with positions and people don't see that, they just look at your games and your goals, they don't see the positions you play in. You hear a lot when you're playing and you hear fans saying that he's not the same player that he used to be, but for me that just urges me on and hopefully the performance against Manchester City will shut a few people up. I'm confident with my ability and people can say what they want but I will keep trying to do what I know I can do. Villa's struggles over the last two campaigns have hit Agbonlahor harder than most, for he was born only three miles away from the stadium. Those halcyon days under O'Neill, where the club finished in the top six three years running, seem decades ago while the squad has suffered a string of high-profile departures with little cash made available to fill the gaps. Agbonlahor has been the one of the few constants in a tumultuous period, even though he has admitted to being so disillusioned under Houllier that he considered quitting the club. But now, at the age of 25, he insists he would have no qualms staying at Villa for the remainder of his career. "You can say I haven't had the move but I'm happy to be here," he said. If the players that were sold had been home-grown players you never know what their choice would have been. If a big club had come in for me, maybe they would have known that I wanted to stay here. It's different for me. If the club wants to keep me and I'm happy, I will stay here for the rest of my career. I've seen a lot of changes, but the chairman has brought this manager in for stability so hopefully that will happen. Agbonlahor, who is Villa's player ambassador for Acorns Childrens" Hospice, has been impressed with Lambert and can see similarities with O'Neill, right down to his strict code of conduct with player fines. He has already been hit in the pocket for the cardinal sin of losing a shooting contest. This afternoon will be Lambert's first derby since his arrival, with Steve Clarke already six points clear of Villa and keen for his team to remain kings of the West Midlands for another season. Chris Brunt, the Albion midfielder, said: "It's probably the strongest squad we've had since I've been here. It's nice for us to be on the up, we keep improving every season and if people tend to regard us as the best team in the area that's great. We had a decent result there last year and we've every reason to go there with confidence.