Roberto Di Matteo will be sacked as Aston Villa manager after Tony Jiantong Xia, the club’s owner, accepted that there is little option but to make a change after such a disappointing start to the season. Senior club officials will hold further talks on Monday, with Di Matteo’s departure viewed as a formality and attention already turning to the Italian’s replacement.
The early indications are that Steve Bruce, who is out of work, and David Wagner, the manager of high-flying Huddersfield Town, are the leading contenders for the position. Bruce would bring with him experience of winning promotion from the Championship while Wagner has made a stunning impact since taking over at Huddersfield in November last year.
Di Matteo’s fate was sealed on Saturday, when Villa slumped to a 2-0 defeat at Preston North End at the end of what was always seen as a defining week for the manager. The Midlands club are 19th in the Championship after winning only once this season – against Rotherham United on 13 August – and with only 10 points from 11 matches.
The Villa supporters turned on Di Matteo at Deepdale and although the former Chelsea manager vowed to fight on, Xia has reluctantly come to the conclusion that the man he appointed in June on a two-year contract needs to move on if the club are to revive their hopes of mounting a promotion challenge.
Di Matteo has enjoyed significant backing in the transfer market and spent more than £50m in the summer assembling a squad with a view to securing an immediate return to the Premier League after relegation last season. Yet the team have yet to click and the dismal performance at Preston on Saturday suggested that things are getting worse.
Steve Round has been appointed as technical director since Di Matteo was brought in and the 45-year-old will have a significant say in the new manager. As well as Bruce and Wagner, other names linked with the post include Lee Johnson, the Bristol City manager, and Steve McClaren.
