Aston Villa poised to scoop big Steven Gerrard replacement with manager’s days numbered

Steven Gerrard could soon face the sack at Aston Villa, with the Premier League strugglers targeting Mauricio Pochettino to haul them out of a tough spot.

Gerrard has not quite lived up to expectation during his time at Villa Park. After leading Rangers to their first Scottish Premiership title in 10 years, it looked as if the manager would continue in that vein in England.

The former Liverpool man managed three victories in his first four games in charge at Villa.

The only loss he suffered in those four games was to eventual title winners Manchester City. Even so, his side performed well, and only lost 2-1, after levelling the score in the second half.

However, the Villans only managed to string consecutive victories together twice, following that point. What’s more, they ended the season three places lower than they had in the previous campaign, under Dean Smith.

This season has proven a challenge for Villa yet again. While through no fault of the management, two of Villa’s marquee summer signings: Diego Carlos and Boubacar Kamara, have sustained injuries.

As such, results have been hard to come by. Indeed, the Villa Park outfit have registered just two league wins this season, over Everton and Southampton.

The Midlanders have also failed to come away with results in games where they would have been expected to.

They lost to Premier League newcomers on the opening day of the season. More recently, they drew 1-1 with Nottingham Forest, who were dead bottom of the table coming into the match.

Currently, Villa sit one point above the drop zone, in 16th.

Gerrard sack pressure ramps up

Pressure on Gerrard is now ramping up, given his side’s poor performances and league position.

In fact, it has been reported that they have identified the man they want to take them forward, and replace Gerrard at the helm. Indeed, The Telegraph reports that Pochettino is the man they want to take charge.

Villa have two games this week, the first away at Fulham, and the second at home to Brentford. It is believed that those games will decide Gerrard’s future, and that a result in only one of them may not be enough.

Reports that he has already lost his job have been rebuffed by Villa’s communications director.

It remains to be seen whether or not Pochettino is interested in the job, should Gerrard face the sack.

However, he could certainly be the man to turn the club around. While in charge at Southampton, he engineered an eighth-placed finish, the season after the Saints had finished 14th.

A manager capable of that sort of turnaround should certainly be what Villa are looking for. They will no doubt want to climb up the table and challenge for the top half, given the size of the club and the funds available to them.

Pochettino has also shown he is capable of managing a big side, too, so should he change Villa’s fortunes, he could be the man to lead them into a new chapter.