Clark signs new Villa deal

Ciaran Clark has committed his future to Aston Villa by signing a new three-year contract with the club.

The defender established himself as a regular in the Villa starting line-up last season, and has now been rewarded by boss Paul Lambert.

Clark made 35 appearances in all competitions during Lambert’s first season at Villa Park.

The 23-year-old defender came through the club’s academy, and he is pleased to have extended his stay until 2016.

“I really couldn’t be more delighted or more proud,” he told the club’s official website.

“I’ve been here since I was 12 years old, progressing from the younger teams through the youth team along with players such as Marc Albrighton, Barry Bannan and another couple who have just signed new deals in Nathan Baker and Andi Weimann.

“Villa has had a deep impact on my life and I’ve been taught proper values here.

“This season will be another tough challenge but we have the players and we have a good young squad. Everyone is hungry for it, we’re working as hard as we can and we can’t wait to start.”

With six new signings already in place ahead of the new Premier League season, Clark sees good things ahead for the club and their supporters.

“There’s definitely a vibrant feeling within the camp and a real desire to push on and keep building,” he added. “We feel like we have very strong foundations in place.

“The last couple of seasons we’ve had some ups and downs and we’ve always stuck together and supported one another.

“The manager has also been superb in instilling confidence and ambition, a real desire to succeed for the club and we’re all hungry to achieve something here.”