Manager says he found it ‘really tough’ when Aston Villa decided to sack him

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The life of a football manager can be tricky and emotional, and a former Aston Villa boss found that out the hard way when he was fired by the club.

Aston Villa currently have Unai Emery at the helm this season, but after an impressive 2024-25 campaign, the Midlands giants are struggling.

Emery is one of the most experienced managers in the Premier League, but his team has won just two of their opening seven fixtures this season.

It has led to some question marks over his long-term future at Villa Park, despite all his success with the club.

However, it was the man he took over from who found being sacked by Aston Villa a tough moment in his career.

Steven Gerrard admits he felt he “couldn’t pull it back” at Aston Villa

Steven Gerrard was replaced by Emery at Villa Park after his time in charge, with the former England international being fired back in October, 2022.

It was his first real taste of failure after a successful career in football, and a strong start to managerial life at Rangers, and he admitted to Rio Ferdinand Presents that it was hard.

“I lost my job at Aston Villa, which was really tough, because I found the last six or seven games really tough, because I felt like I couldn’t pull it back. And it’s frustrating when you’re in that position.

“You’re working harder, you’re doing more, and you just can’t pull it back, because you know that the dressing room’s maybe not going to help you pull it back.”

While Gerrard didn’t explicitly say he had lost the dressing room, his comments seemed to allude to that being the case at the end of his tenure.

The Liverpool legend lost 19 of his 40 games in charge of the club, winning 13, and drawing the other eight, which wasn’t a good enough return then.

Compared to Gerrard, Emery boasts a 53.44 win per cent rate at Aston Villa, which is higher than any manager in the club’s history.

Steven Gerrard’s managerial career has been a mixed bag so far

Former players transitioning into management isn’t necessarily a recipe for success, as many people have found out over the years.

However, Gerrard made an impressive start to his managerial career in his first job in charge of Rangers, which led to him gaining a lot of positive feedback.

Gerrard guided the Gers to a record-breaking season in the 2020-21 campaign, which saw them win the Scottish Premiership without losing a single game.

That run led to him getting an opportunity in the Premier League, but his results at Aston Villa were mixed, which is why the club parted ways with him.

Gerrard then opted to move to Saudi Arabia to manage Al-Ettifaq. Despite mixed success, he left by mutual consent in January 2025, meaning he’s now waiting for his next opportunity.