Aston Villa do not expect to announce a managerial replacement for Remi Garde before the end of the week, and the assistant coach Eric Black will attend tomorrow’s press conference before taking training at Bodymoor.

The former Lyon manager Garde left by mutual consent on Tuesday after just five months in the job, with Villa 12 points from safety at the foot of the Premier League with seven games remaining.

The first of those is Saturday’s early kick-off against Chelsea, for which Black will be in charge. Villa are believed to want a British manager with Premier League experience but are realistic about the attractiveness of their present vacancy when relegation is a virtual certainty.

Nigel Pearson and David Moyes are in the frame and available, though the club recognise an incoming manager’s preference may be to take over in summer, even if that means starting afresh in the Championship.

Too late

Other available candidates include Garry Monk and Brendan Rodgers, though Hull’s Steve Bruce and Mark Warburton of Rangers are also among names being quoted by bookmakers.

Villa accept that anyone presently in charge of a club would be unapproachable until the close season in any case, and privately seem ready to admit it might be too late to appoint a manager on the basis of availability and expect him to guide the club to safety.

Guardian Service