Aston Villa appoints Alex McLeish as new manager

[News_Editor]

Aston Villa appoints Alex McLeish as new manager

2011-06-17 15:38:05 GMT+7 (ICT)

BIRMINGHAM (BNO NEWS) -- English football club Aston Villa on Friday announced that it has appointed Alex McLeish as their new manager, who will assume his new duties with immediate effect.

McLeish, 55, began his managerial career in 1994 at Scottish football club Motherwell whom he guided in his first season to second place behind Rangers, then in the midst of their nine-in-a-row Scottish titles. He later managed Hibernian, Rangers, and Scotland up until 2007.

But after leaving the Scotland national football team in 2007, McLeish served as manager for Birmingham City until he unexpectedly resigned by e-mail on Sunday. "Acting chairman Peter Pannu received an e-mail resignation from McLeish earlier today while away on business in Amsterdam," Birmingham City F.C. said in a brief statement.

There were immediately rumors that McLeish had Aston Villa as his next destination, and news that Aston Villa would proceed with an interview with McLeish angered Birmingham City F.C. The club said it saw the move as a contempt of Premier League and FA rules.

"The club feels this will taint football and give the game and the footballing authorities a bad name if this is allowed to materialize," Birmingham City F.C. said in a statement on Tuesday. "The club will do what is within its powers to prevent this and will lodge a formal complaint to the authorities tomorrow as there is now not the slightest doubt remaining about this tap up attempt."

The club added that McLeish's move, if condoned, would "open up flood gates" and "set a very bad precedent." "This is also an attack against the intelligence and integrity of not only the Villa fans, but most importantly our fans who are badly let down after having just been relegated," Birmingham City F.C. said in its statement.

In Friday's announcement, Aston Villa chief executive Paul Faulkner said he believes the club has appointed the right man for the job. "Alex is someone with whom we will work close and work well together," Faulkner said.

"Unquestionably, Alex meets the criteria we set out at the beginning of our search which was based on proven Premier League experience, leadership, a hard-working ethic and, most importantly, a shared vision for Aston Villa," Faulkner said, adding that it aims to compete as strongly as it can.

McLeish said he was honored to have the opportunity to manage Aston Villa. "The heritage, the history of success and the tradition of Aston Villa are compelling and irresistible. The challenge for me is to try to add my own chapter," he said in a statement. "Since first becoming a manager at Motherwell, my desire to succeed and my energy and drive have never waned. My objective is to impart that drive and will to win to the players and fans of Aston Villa."

McLeish said he understood that some fans have raised concerns about the sudden developments. "It will be up to me to convince you that I am the right man to drive the Club forward and I intend to give absolutely everything to prove that I can be a success at the Club," he said.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2011-06-17

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