England midfielder Gareth Barry said he would not have left Aston Villa to join Manchester City had Martin O'Neill's side secured Champions League qualification.

Villa faded in the latter part of the season to finish sixth having been fourth in mid-March.

Barry, 28, joined Premier League rivals City for 12 million pounds earlier this month after playing over 400 games for Villa.

"If Villa had finished fourth I would have stayed. I would have enjoyed playing Champions League football at Villa Park. It would have been wrong for me to have left had this been achieved," Barry told reporters.

"But once it was looking like Villa weren't going to make it then my future became unclear.

"The whole point of me coming here was to have a change, something that excites me.

"Playing in the Champions League with Manchester City is viable. The manager has convinced me we can reach these heights."

Barry also sought assurances from City's billionaire owners that coach Mark Hughes would remain in charge before putting pen to paper.

"I have to look at the fact that I've joined a club that is not competing in European football," he added.

"People will question this decision but I'm confident that in a couple of years time people will realise I made the right decision.

"We all know about the ambition of this club and it excites me. They want to sign top international players and it just felt like the right thing to do to come here.

"The first question I wanted to know about was the future of the manager. I've seen it before. Players join clubs then two months later the manager is gone and their future is uncertain."