Steven Gerrard shuts down Liverpool theory with Aston Villa response

Steven Gerrard claims he is trying to build a 'really exciting' Aston Villa side which fans can feel proud of, as he waved away suggestions he was attempting to mimic Liverpool teams of old.

The Reds legend was delighted to see Villa get back to winning ways on home soil with a 4-0 victory over Southampton to end a three-month wait for a win at Villa Park.

It was the first time Villa had netted four or more goals at home since the 7-2 thrashing of Liverpool over 17 months ago and the victory means Gerrard has now won back-to-back Premier League games for a second time since he made the perfect start back in November, claiming two wins in his first two games.

Against Southampton, it was the Philippe Coutinho show at times, with the Brazilian magician having a hand in two of Villa's four goals. He could've netted a hat-trick on another day, but having recorded six goal contributions in his first seven games, he's showing the sort of form that tempted Barcelona to shell out £142million for his services four years ago.

Gerrard admitted he was 'above the game' and claimed he was showing flashes of brilliance like he did at Liverpool.

But the Villa boss was keen to shut down any suggestions that he was trying to build a team based off a side he had previously played in at Anfield.

Asked whether the was the case, he replied: "No. I don’t play in that Liverpool team anymore, I’m not the manager of Liverpool, I’m not trying to copy any style from Liverpool, Liverpool are Liverpool, I’m Steven Gerrard, the Aston Villa manager.

"I’m trying to build a really exciting Aston Villa team that can move forward and makes these fans proud and happy watching their team week in, week out.

"I don’t think about Liverpool, so if you think