Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert has played down concerns over his side's upcoming run of tough fixtures in the Premier League.
The Villans travel to Liverpool on Saturday before consecutive matches against Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and Everton.
Despite such a tricky spell of games, Lambert is confident that Villa can put up a strong challenge against the top teams.
"In terms of the fixture list it was the same last season because we had Arsenal, Chelsea, and Liverpool in a week. It's similar this time around because it's come in September," he told the Birmingham Mail.
"You would probably prefer to have them during the early stages of the season rather than having them at the end when they're right in their stride. We took points off them last season so who's to say we can't do it again?
"It is what it is. I know how hard the run is but it will be the same with other teams later in the season, they will have them all to play at some point."
Villa are currently in third place in the table after taking seven points from their opening three matches.
Jack Prescott
