Dean Smith has been fired as manager of Aston Villa.
Villa have 10 points from their first 11 Premier League games this season and have lost their last five games in a row.
Smith, meanwhile, has been in charge of Villa for three years and led the club back into the Premier League via the Championship play-offs in his debut season.
Last year, Villa reached the Carabao Cup final under Smith, but were defeated 2-1 by Manchester City.
Villa invested roughly £90 million on new players during the summer transfer window, whilst Jack Grealish left for Manchester City.
Smith led Villa to three wins in their first six Premier League games this season, including a 1-0 win at Manchester United, but his team has since been defeated by Tottenham, Wolves, Arsenal, West Ham, and Southampton.
‘When Dean joined us in October 2018, our club was badly struggling in the Championship,’ said Villa CEO Christian Purslow. He quickly altered the mood and performances, ultimately bringing Villa back to the Premier League in the same season – a remarkable occurrence.
‘After a difficult season, he secured our spot in the Premier League and led us to a Cup Final at Wembley.’
‘However, following a promising start to the season last year, we have yet to see the consistent progress in results, performances, and league position that we had all hoped for this year.
‘As a result, we’ve decided to make a change immediately to give a new head coach time to make an impression.’
‘The board would like to express its heartfelt gratitude to Dean for his numerous outstanding achievements, both on and off the field, throughout this period.’ Everyone understands how important Aston Villa is to Dean and his family. He has represented the club with distinction and decency, and he is generally appreciated and respected by everyone affiliated with Aston Villa, including our staff, players, and supporters. We wish him the best of luck.’
