Aston Villa captain John McGinn is convinced by the quality of Bournemouth midfielder Ryan Christie.

McGinn rates his Scotland teammate among the best performers in the Premier League.

He told the Daily Echo: “I don't really enjoy playing against my mates.

“He's a top player. He's been one of their best players this year.

“By far one of the best centre-mids in the league.

“So we knew it wasn't going to be easy. Lewis Cook is a great player as well.

“But I've quite enjoyed the past couple of games playing with Youri (Tielemans).

“It felt really good in there.

“I'm glad I don't need to play against my mates until Liverpool. But I'm sure when me and Robbo (Andrew Robertson) come up against each other, we'll park our friendship until the end of the game."