"It was one of the best performances of the season, if not the one, because of the different elements we had to produce to win the match," he said after the game.
"We've shown that we can test ourselves on an equal footing with a team like Aston Villa.
"The first half was as good as we've been able to produce. If we're honest we should have been out sight by half-time but you expect a reaction from Villa and we got it.
"They brought on John Carew and we had a different type of challenge in the second half. We had to stand up to Villa's physical presence and we did that as well. It was about resolve and determination.
"The crowd understood when we were under pressure, and they got behind us to give a bit of help when we needed it. The second goal was the icing on the cake on a very accomplished performance."