Aston Villa: the management contenders
Since Martin O’Neill resigned as manager of English Premier League outfit Aston Villa, speculation has been rife over who will be his successor.
Reserve team boss Kevin MacDonald was promoted to take temporary charge of the team, but has had mixed results so far. Though Villa are currently fourth in the league after picking up two wins, they were on the receiving end of a 6-0 thumping by Newcastle United and were dumped out of the UEFA Europa League at the play-off stage by Rapid Vienna.
However, the Villa board have revealed they are on the lookout for a manager with EPL experience. Here’s a look at some of the contenders for the role:
Kevin MacDonald
Though he has no experience of managing a team on a permanent basis in the EPL, MacDonald has performed admirably in his role as reserve team boss. He led the team to three consecutive FA Premier Reserve League South titles and won the overall league in the 2008-09 season.
MacDonald was reported by The Sun as wanting the job on a permanent basis, but it remains to be seen as to whether he will be offered the role.
Sven-Goran Eriksson
The former England manager has a formidable pedigree as a manager. He has won league titles with Goteborg in his homeland of Sweden, Portuguese outfit Benfica and Serie A Club Lazio, while he has also led those teams to success in the European arena.
He has also managed Manchester City, providing him with experience in the EPL, and he has also taken charge of Mexico. Eriksson was in charge of the Ivory Coast during the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, though he could not help the team progress from the group stage of the competition.
It has been reported that Eriksson has already been interviewed for the Villa job.
Alan Curbishley
Though Curbishley has been out of work since resigning as manager of West Ham United in September 2008, he has an abundance of experience as manager after fifteen years overseeing Charlton Athletic, during which time he established them in the EPL.
He has reportedly been interviewed for the manager’s job by the Villa board.
Ronald Koeman
The former AZ Alkmaar boss has been out of work since December, but has revealed an interest in the Villa job. The 47 year-old told The Daily Express that, “I have been holding off and turning down offers simply because I want to coach in England, and where better than Villa Park?”
Koeman has won the European Cup as a player with Barcelona and PSV Eindhoven, and spoke of his credentials as a coach when he said that, “I’ve coached in Holland, Portugal and Spain and not only won trophies each time, but taken sides to the latter stages of the Champions League.”
Gerard Houllier
Houllier has also emerged as a potential candidate to take over the Villa hot seat. He fits the board’s requirement of having managed at EPL level, having managed Liverpool for six years between 1998 and 2004, during which time he won the UEFA Cup. He also won the UEFA Super Cup, FA Cup, FA Community Shield and two Football League Cups with the Reds.
The 62 year-old Frenchman has also enjoyed success with Olympique Lyonnais, having led the side to two French Ligue 1 titles.
Gareth Southgate
Former Villa captain Southgate has also been strongly linked with the job. He has not been a club manager since he was sacked as Middlesbrough manager in October 2009 despite the club being just one point from the top of the Football League Championship.
However, he had led the club to relegation from the EPL and he may have to prove himself with a lower-league club before being invited to manage a high-profile side such as Villa.
Everton boss David Moyes, Birmingham City's Alex McLeish and Fulham manager Mark Hughes have also been touted as possible contenders, but each of those would require a substantial fee to be paid to their clubs and a currently out-of-work man would be a more likely option for the cash-strapped Villa board.
Of the candidates mentioned, it would seem that MacDonald, Eriksson or Curbishley are those in pole position to win the job on a permanent basis.
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