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Steven Gerrard’s tenure at Aston Villa came to an end on Friday (21 October) as the club announced his departure with immediate effect. The announcement came in less than two hours after a 3-0 loss to Fulham on Thursday. Gerrard had joined the Premier League club in November last year. He was roped in after an impressive stint with the Scottish side Rangers.
The writing was on the wall for the English manager after a dismal display that left Aston Villa in 17th place after 11 games and only out of the relegation zone on goals scored. Gerrard joins Thomas Tuchel, Scott Parker and Bruno Lage on the list of managers who have departed this season.
Gerrard's dismissal was confirmed in a statement on the club's website after full-time, that read: "Aston Villa Football Club can confirm that Head Coach Steven Gerrard has left the club with immediate effect." A club spokesperson added: "We would like to thank Steven for his hard work and commitment and wish him well for the future."
After turning around the fortunes of Rangers in Scottish soccer and ending the long-time dominance of Glasgow rival Celtic, Gerrard was expected to do the same for Aston Villa. He was hired by the English club in November of last year but could last for only 11 months. Aston Villa only won one of the 19 Premier League games in which they conceded the first goal under Steven Gerrard.
The threshold was crossed when Villa was comfortably beaten by promoted side Fulham in a drab display from Gerrard's side at Craven Cottage that saw Fulham draw ahead after half an hour and Douglas Luiz sent off for Villa after an hour. Now, Villa will begin their fight against Brentford on Sunday without a manager.
As per the reports, former Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur and Paris St Germain manager Mauricio Pochettino has emerged as an early favourite to take over from Gerrard.
