Tim Sherwood confirmed as new Aston Villa manager

Former Tottenham coach makes return to the dugout

Tim Sherwood was interested in jobs at QPR and West Brom (Getty Images)

Tim Sherwood is the new manager of Aston Villa after agreeing a three-and-a-half year deal with the Premier League club.

The former Tottenham manager quickly became the front-runner for the job following the dismissal of Paul Lambert earlier this week and has now been confirmed as the Scot's successor.

In a tweet the club said: "NEW MANAGER: A very warm claret and blue welcome to Tim Sherwood."

Sherwood was the only manager Aston Villa spoke to in their quest to replace Lambert and the club had been eager to make a quick appointment.

The club had revised their plans and instead of going for a short-term candidate to take them to the end of the season – and keep Villa in the Premier League – they wanted someone for the long-term who will secure them survival and build for the future.

Sherwood's first game in charge will be against Stoke City a week tomorrow.

Tom Fox, Aston Villa chief executive said: "(Owner) Randy (Lerner) and I are really pleased that Tim has decided to join the club.

"Tim had a fantastic career at Tottenham, not only in his brief spell as first-team manager but, just as importantly, in the role he played in developing young talent.

"We are determined to build a football operation with a long-term vision and a commitment to youth development.

"We strongly believe Tim has the qualities to get the best out of our current squad and help us build and develop for the future."

Sherwood told the club's website: "It is a great honour to manage one of the biggest clubs in English football.

"I can't wait to get started and I'm really looking forward to the challenge."

Tim Sherwood with the Premier League trophy at Blackburn (GETTY IMAGES)

Villa chairman Lerner commented: "While being forever conscious of the frustrations that we all suffer, we feel that a change that offers a positive, fresh approach will be very good for the club.

"I know that Tom and many others at Villa worked very hard to recruit Tim in the face of severely limited time constraints and pounding pressure.

"More importantly, I know further that internally we remain focused and committed to challenges we face, and I am deeply appreciative for that."

Paul Lambert was dismissed after a failure to win in 10 games (Getty Images)

A long-term project is the kind that Sherwood has sought since leaving Tottenham at the end of last season. Villa want a manager who can make progress in the Premier League in the same way Southampton and Swansea have done – with astute signings and by developing young players

Sherwood had extensive talks over the QPR job and sought basic assurances about the club’s plan after the summer, when they face the prospect of a £40m fine from the Football League for contravention of its financial fair play rules.

The two parties could not reach agreement and Sherwood found himself in contention for a third different job in the space of two months, following his talks with West Bromwich Albion at the end of December, and then QPR.