Herd, who was given his maiden Socceroos call-up recently before injury forced him to withdraw, has started Villa's past three matches having previously only managed a handful of sporadic appearances for the club.

The 22-year-old has been playing in midfield for the Villans, where McLeish believes he's added plenty allowing Stiliyan Petrov more freedom to attack.

"Chris's introduction has been very good for us. He actually did very well in the West Brom game before he was sent off, wrongly of course,” McLeish told the club's website.

"He took that on against Sunderland then against Norwich he was exceptional. He's quick, he's dynamic, he gets tackles in and he's good in the air. He's certainly been a good addition to the team, no question.”

McLeish added: "Herdy gives Stiliyan a bit more freedom to get forward. That is really Stiliyan's game - he's a forward-thinking midfielder.”

The Villa boss continued that he'd been thoroughly impressed by Herd's attitude on the training paddock although he admitted the Australian could make improvements in his game.

"Chris is one of the best trainers at the club. His attitude is absolutely tremendous - a manager's dream,” he said. "He will train the way he plays on Saturday by giving it absolutely everything.

"Herdy can improve technically if he keeps practising. Certainly he has the desire - there is no doubt in my mind that he has the desire."