Houllier has come under fire from supporters who called for him to be sacked after the recent 1-0 home defeat by Wolves. That left Villa just one point above the Premier League relegation zone. But Houllier is adamant a close bond remains between himself, Lerner and Faulkner. Houllier, whose side visit Everton on Saturday, said: "I speak to Randy Lerner on a regular basis and I speak also to Paul Faulkner a minimum of once a day. "We are very close and very tight together. We know what we are going through. "It is important to be in a club where there is a strong belief and the trust is there. "I think their support for me is just as strong. In fact, I am convinced of that." Houllier believes the club is unified in the battle to stay in the top flight but he has issued a warning to anyone not committed fully to Villa's cause. He said: "I believe the club is unified. If someone is not with us and not giving more than 100%, he's got to leave because we won't make it. "But I think we are all right and there is no problem. "The spirit is good, we know where the land lies, we're not lying to ourselves, we are in a relegation battle, like others and we are aware of that. "At the same time we have the quality and mentality to deal with that." Houllier also plays down suggestions he has had a crackdown on club rules with reports claiming players were unhappy about his attitude towards the use of mobile phones. He said: "Regarding the mobile phones, I only mentioned it on my first day but there was no ban. "In fact, they are very reasonable because there is no use of them in the changing room and I don't go and check it." The former Liverpool boss also dismisses the theory that he is in favour of fining players, including relating to their time-keeping. He said: "I heard about fines but I've never put a fine on a player who's been late. "If someone comes in from London and they get stuck in a traffic jam, they ring. "You are not going to give them another bang on their head by fining them. It has happened maybe once or twice. "I hate fines and I never give fines."
