Lambert can restore Villa magic

Evans watched on from the opposite dugout as the Barclays Premier League side cruised into the third round of the Capital One Cup on Wednesday night with a 3-0 win, courtesy of goals from Andreas Weimann, Christian Benteke and Fabian Delph.

It was a far cry from last season's harrowing semi-final defeat to Bradford, and the way Villa have acquitted themselves over the first few games of the campaign - where they have played Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool in the Barclays Premier League - has given fans cause for optimism.

Despite being embroiled in a relegation battle last season, Lambert always said he was building for the future and fellow Glaswegian Evans expects that to bear fruit sooner rather than later.

"They have fantastic supporters and I think they are watching something very special getting built here by Paul," the Millers boss said.

"I know him from when he was growing up with holes in his shoes in Glasgow. I think he was a fantastic player, I watched him many times when he played for Celtic and you only need to look at the job he did at Norwich to see how good he is.

"He got a bit of stick when he first came here, but I think you can see what he is about, he has built a young team and he is not afraid to make brave decisions.

"I think he will end up managing one of the top four or five clubs, whether that is in England or Germany where he is highly regarded.

"But he has a lot to achieve here before that because he has found some very talented players.

"When he signed Benteke everyone was saying 'Benteke who?' - now everyone in football knows who he is.

Source: PA

Source: PA