Roberto Di Matteo has been handed the task of restoring Aston Villa’s fortunes after the seven-times English champions an-nounced the Italian as their new manager yesterday.
The 46-year-old, who won the Champions League during a short spell in charge of Chelsea in 2012, takes over weeks after the club were relegated from the Premier League.
“It’s a wonderful honour for me to become manager of this great football club, and I’m looking forward to the challenge of taking Aston Villa back to its rightful place,” Di Matteo said.
Former Chelsea team-mate and coach Steve Clarke has also been appointed as Di Matteo’s assistant.
Di Matteo has previously worked as a manager in the second-tier Championship, gaining promotion with West Bromwich Albion in 2009-10.
Villa will be hoping he can have a similar impact after a dreadful season in which they finished bottom with only three wins and sacked two managers, Tim Sherwood in October and his replacement Remi Garde in March.
Swiss-born former Italy midfielder Di Matteo played for Lazio and Chelsea and once scored after 42 seconds in the 1997 FA Cup final against Middlesbrough.
He won two FA Cups, a League Cup and a UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup while at Stamford Bridge and returned to Chelsea as assistant manager to Andre Villas-Boas in 2011, stepping up as interim manager when the Portuguese was sacked in March 2012.
Against all expectations, he guided Chelsea to a Champions League semi-final defeat of Barcelona and then beat Bayern Munich on penalties in the final at their own stadium.
Di Matteo was rewarded by being appointed Chelsea manager on a permanent basis but by November, he had fallen out of favour and was sacked after a Champions League defeat by Juventus.
Since then, he managed Schalke 04 in the Bundesliga but resigned in May 2015.
The issues facing Di Matteo…
Purge the dressing room
• For too long Villa players have got away with ill discipline, from Gabby Agbonlahor’s partying immediately after their relegation to Jack Grealish’s wild ways and Joleon Lescott’s bungled apology over his tweet of a luxury car in the wake of a 6-0 defeat.
Charles N’Zogbia has been a drain on the club but any misbehaviour should not be tolerated. Jores Okore was harshly banished, despite wanting to play, and Di Matteo should try to persuade the Dane to stay given he is one of the good guys at the club.
Swift transfer business
• Villa signed 13 players last summer, spending around £55 million, but they will have to revamp the squad again after relegation.
Brad Guzan, Micah Richards, Lescott and Leandro Bacuna all lost the faith of the fans and it would be hard to see them regaining it next season.
Jordan Ayew is likely to leave with Idrissa Gana and Jordan Veretout expected to follow him. There is a lot of work ahead but trying to shift some of Villa’s flops will be easier said than done.
Get the fans onside
• Supporters had passed into full-scale revolt towards the end of Randy Lerner’s reign as Aston Villa slipped out of the English top flight for the first time since 1987.
They have won just 30 of their last 114 home league matches and fans had cracked following five years of struggle and ultimate failure.
There will be expectation on Di Matteo to produce, given he is backed by owner Tony Xia, and he cannot afford any false starts.
Be a leader
• Aston Villa have lacked a true flag bearer for some time. Eric Black tried and failed to rule with an iron fist while Remi Garde was the wrong man at the wrong time.
Throughout his reign Paul Lambert was the club’s figurehead as he was the only person speaking.
Di Matteo cannot allow himself to be the only man to front up at Villa but he must be strong enough to handle the weight of expectation and control what has been an unruly dressing room.