Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert has praised the impact that counterpart Tony Pulis has had on Crystal Palace ahead of the Boxing Day meeting between the teams.

Palace have picked up two wins from Pulis's first five games in charge to move to within a point of safety in the Premier League table.

"Tony's given them a lift," Lambert is quoted as saying by Sky Sports News. "He's an infectious kind of guy, I've been in his company a lot and he's good company.

"You look at the job he did at Stoke. I don't think he got given the credit for it. The club is the way it is because of him. He has his way of playing and you have to respect it - there's no right way and wrong way to play a game of football.

"Sometimes a manager goes in and gets a lift, sometimes it tails off, but it will be a tough game for us."

Lambert's side welcome Palace to Villa Park looking to end a winless run of three matches.