Garde confirmed as new Aston Villa manager

Garde has signed a deal until the summer of 2019 and replaces Tim Sherwood as boss at Villa Park.

Garde told the Villa website: “It is an unbelievable honour to be the manager of such an illustrious football club.

“I’ve had extremely positive meetings with both the owner, Randy Lerner, and Chief Executive Tom Fox. They have ambitious plans for the Club and I’m excited that they have turned to me to help them realise them.

“Obviously we have a difficult task in front of us but I’m looking forward to the challenge with the support of everyone who loves Aston Villa.”

Villa owner Randy Lerner said: “Nobody at Villa can deny that we are way behind.

“We recruited aggressively this past summer and it is our responsibility to now harvest this talent rather than buckle under pressure and criticism – we are better than that. On behalf of the Board we wish Remi every success.

“Remi came with ideas, honesty, humour and a steely sense of what it will take for Aston Villa to be what it is meant to be – hard working, tireless, creative and unwilling to concede.”