Mings is back! Gerrard reveals why he's giving new chance to Aston Villa centre-back days after stripping captaincy & dropping him

Tyrone Mings has been given another chance to impress Aston Villa coach Steven Gerrard as he returned to the starting XI for the their Premier League clash against Everton on Saturday. The defender was recently stripped of the captain's armband and criticised for his performances and was an unused substitute in last week's clash with Bournemouth.

Gerrard has, however, brought him back into the team for the encounter at Villa Park and explained why he opted to give the England international the opportunity to show he can still be a key player.

What did Gerrard say about Tyrone Mings?

"He's fully fit, I think that's the most important thing," Gerrard said on BT Sport ahead of the game.

"Last week he had an obturation on his groin which he missed three or four sessions leading into the Bournemouth game.

"I know I took the captaincy off of him but I didn't take his position off of him and this week he's trained extremely well.

"We've been vulnerable from a set-piece point of view in the last couple of games - in a friendly and against Bournemouth - so having his profile and his first contacts today, hopefully he'll be very important for us."

Will Mings be better off without the captaincy?

Before the start of the new campaign, it was confirmed that the captain's armband had been taken off of Mings and given to John McGinn instead.

Gerrard, who was appointed Villa boss in November last year, explained that he wanted to make his own impression regarding the captaincy and believes that the disappointment will encourage Mings to raise his game.

"I always try and be honest, try and be authentic and respectful. I inherited the captaincy situation at this club and I wanted to put my own stamp on it, I wanted it to be my selection," he said.

"I'm hoping in the long run it can help Tyrone. I've spoken to him about his own level of performance and consistencies.

"Hopefully with a bit less spotlight on Tyrone he can get back to his best because when he brings his attributes to the game and his consistency, we've all seen that at international level and domestically he can be a top centre-half."