And now he is hoping for a place in Villa's last five games to show manager Graham Taylor that he is worthy of a new deal at Villa Park.
"The main thing is that Aston Villa stay up now. I'm just glad to be involved again. Hopefully I can play a bit more towards the end of the season but there are not many games left.
“I still have plenty to offer at this level,” he told the club's official website.
"We'll just have to see what happens. I need games to be at my best, that's all I need. And I said that when I came here.
"It's been very disappointing to be injured, and I don't want to make a big thing of it but I have been fit for a long time now.
"It has been tough. I expected to play more when I came here. That's why I signed. But I don't want to say too much about that because it's almost the end of the season, it's almost finished, so why should I?
"Hopefully I'll get something sorted. I still think I have things to offer, but that's up to the manager. If things don't work out here, I'm not sure where that leaves me. I'll just have to see what is happening.”
WEST HAM MATCH REPORT