Lerner blasts McLeish as Villa eye new boss

Aston Villa owner Randy Lerner has criticised the performance levels and results during sacked manager Alex McLeish’s reign.

Villa are looking for a fourth manager in less than two years after Martin O’Neill’s resignation and then Gerard Houllier having to quit on health grounds before McLeish was appointed last summer.

It was always a gamble to appoint McLeish, given his frosty relationship with Villa fans after his spell in charge of local rivals Birmingham — and one that patently failed and ended with his sacking yesterday. Villa only avoided relegation from the Premier League during the penultimate weekend of the season and the brand of football on show has been uninspiring.

Lerner, in a media statement, said: “We need to be clear and candid with ourselves and with supporters about what we have lacked in recent years. Compelling play and results that instil a sense of confidence that Villa is on the right track have been plainly absent.

“The most immediate action that we can take is to look carefully at our options in terms of bringing in a new manager who sees the club’s potential and embraces our collective expectations.”

Villa axed McLeish less than 24 hours after a performance the Scot described as “woeful” in a 2-0 defeat at Norwich, whose manager Paul Lambert is early favourite to replace McLeish.