Premier League Aston Villa have sacked manager Dean Smith with Rangers gaffer Steven Gerrard mentioned alongside the role almost instantly.
Smith, 50, became the second Premier League manager to be fired in the last 24 hours after he was relieved of his duties at Villa Park.
The news follows the sacking of Daniel Farke from his post at Norwich City despite the German coach recording the Canaries’ first win of the season against Brentford over the weekend.
This comes after Villa were defeated 1-0 by Southampton this weekend, the Birmingham club’s fifth straight defeat in the English Premier League.
Smith had been in charge of the Villains for three years before his sacking and had led the club to the Premier League in their first season in charge.
The Englishman also guided Villa to a Carabao Cup Final of 2020, narrowly losing the fixture 2-1 to megabucks Man City.
“The Board would like to sincerely thank Dean for his many excellent achievements, on and off the pitch, during this time,” said Aston Villa CEO Christian Purslow in a club statement.
“Everyone knows how much Aston Villa means to Dean and his family.
“He has represented the Club with distinction and dignity – universally liked and respected by everybody associated with Aston Villa – our staff, players and supporters alike. We wish him the very best.”
Steven Gerrard was first mentioned besides the role by an Aston Villa fan with ex-Celtic star Chris Sutton mixing the pot by suggesting Gerrard would jump at the chance to manage at Villa Park.
Aston Villa “considering” move for Rangers boss Steven Gerrard
The Telegraph are claiming that Rangers boss Gerrard is “high on the Villa wishlist” alongside Southampton boss Ralph Hasenhuttl.
That report claims that Villa want to make a “swift” managerial appointment within the next fortnight during the international break.
Alongside Gerrard and Hasenhuttl, Denamark boss Kasper Hjulmand, Brentford boss Thomas Frank and ex-Porto and Roma boss Paulo Fonseca have been mentioned.
The Telegraph also cites a personal “connection” between Gerrard and Villa CEO Purslow, whom the Rangers boss knows from his Liverpool days.
The Premier League side also reportedly acknowledge that the Gers consider their manager a “major asset” with Gerrard tied to Rangers until 2024.
Rangers fans are certainly used to their manager being linked to Premier League vacancies; the Ibrox gaffer has been linked to seven clubs south of the border in the past.
