Defender Olof Mellberg says his "best footballing years" have been at Aston Villa - and wants to sign off by helping the Villans reach Europe.The 30-year-old Swede announced in January he had signed a pre-contract agreement with Italian giants Juventus and would bring to an end a seven-year spell in Birmingham at the end of the season.
Mellberg said: "It would be nice to finish on a high and qualify for Europe and for the club to take another step next season.
"It will be (hard to leave). I've had a great time - my best footballing years - and made many friends. I feel a lot for the club and for the fans and people within the club as well. It's been a great time."
Villa were involved in a battle with Everton and Liverpool for the final Champions League spot but a run of four games without a win has left them fighting for the Intertoto Cup place instead.
The season has still been a success for Villa, however, with a marked improvement on last term under O'Neill and young stars Gabriel Agbonlahor and Ashley Young breaking into the England squad.
Mellberg said: "There's quite a gap now up to the fifth spot. But we're still challenging for the Intertoto with Man City and Portsmouth so you still have a chance to qualify for Europe.
"We've got other young talented players (as well as Agbonlahor and Young) who are doing well so I think the future is bright."
Mellberg had been consistently linked with a move to Juventus and the prospect of playing in Serie A and possibly the Champions League proved too good to turn down.
"I thought it was the right time (to move)," said the former Villa captain. "You never know but it felt like the right time.
"They came along and they've been interested in me for quite some time and they've followed me both with the national team and Villa.
"They've got a great manager and it's also one of the biggest clubs in the world so it was an opportunity that was right to take.
"I am following them all the time now, I'm watching on TV all the games. They're doing well at the moment. It's important that we qualify for the Champions League and we're up there challenging."
Before joining Juve, Mellberg will travel to Austria and Switzerland this summer for the European Championships - but he is disappointed an old rival will not be there.
"I would definitely have liked to have seen England there," he added. "England belong in the major championships. They're always great games to play.
"We've obviously played them quite a lot of times and we always enjoy those games. I think that always adds a little bit extra to the tournament, having the big nations there, so I think it's a shame."
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