Steven Gerrard on Thursday had only just finished telling interviewers that he would fight on at Aston Villa after a 3-0 loss to Fulham minutes earlier when the announcement came that he was fired.
“Aston Villa Football Club can confirm that head coach Steven Gerrard has left the club with immediate effect,” the club said in a statement. “We would like to thank Steven for his hard work and commitment and wish him well for the future.”
It felt particularly cruel that Gerrard would be thrust in front of the cameras to defend his position if, as appears, his fate had already been sealed by the loss minutes earlier.
Photo: AFP
Villa fans had called for him to be fired after a result that left his team just above the relegation zone.
“It’s tough,” he told Amazon Prime. “I’m a man, I accept it, I feel their frustrations, I’m frustrated. It was a tough night for me personally.”
“We will see what happens. I’m a fighter, I will never, ever quit anything whether it’s football or in life,” he said.
Photo: Reuters
Fulham fans had mercilessly taunted Gerrard with chants of “Sacked in the morning.”
They underestimated the speed with which Villa would act — ending his reign after less than a year in charge amid growing speculation that Mauricio Pochettino is the dream target to replace him.
It has been a rapid fall from grace for Gerrard, who led Rangers to the Scottish title in his first job in management and was tipped to take charge at his beloved Liverpool in the future.
It could be a long way back for him now after failing to arrest Villa’s slide, which began in March and has resulted in just four wins in their past 22 Premier League games.
His team looked devoid of confidence against Fulham and defeat left them level on points with Wolverhampton Wanderers in 18th.
Harrison Reed and Aleksandar Mitrovic put the home team in control on a night when Douglas Luiz was sent off and Tyrone Mings also put one into his own net.
While Gerrard’s reign has come to a sorry end, his former Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers is providing a glimmer of hope to Leicester City fans, who were fearing the worst just a few weeks ago.
A 2-0 win against Leeds United moved Rodgers’ team off the foot of the Premier League and to within a point of Villa.
For the first time this season, Leicester are looking upward in hope, rather than despondency.
Seven of their eight points this term have been picked up in their past four games to suggest that Rodgers has turned a corner after such a desperate start.
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