Steven Gerrard has expressed his regret at failing to meet expectations at Aston Villa after being relieved of his duties earlier this week.
Gerrard's 11 month spell was brought to the end in the immediate aftermath of the recent 3-0 defeat to Fulham, after which he returned to the Midlands on the same coach as the team who had just sacked him.
"I would like to thank everyone connected to Aston Villa Football Club, for the support shown to me during my time there," Gerrard wrote on Instagram. "I would personally like to thank the board of directors, the players and all the staff for their hard work.
"To the fans, it is regrettable that it didn't work out in the end, but I owe you a debt of gratitude for the way you welcomed me into your club, and continued to push the team on during difficult times.
"Aston Villa is a club with a special history, I really wanted to bring back those memorable achievements, unfortunately it wasn't to be. I wish everyone at the club all the very best for the future."
90min understands that Villa are targeting Sporting CP boss Ruben Amorim as their next manager, having learned that neither Mauricio Pochettino or Thomas Tuchel would be interested in taking the job.
Former England teammate Frank Lampard, now in charge at Everton, offered his support to the 'very tough' Gerrard after his departure from Villa Park.
"We all understand the jeopardy of the job we work in, and there are a lot of pluses to it, huge pluses," Lampard said. "But as a coach in the modern day, you need time to work, circumstances to work. We've all got responsibilities, we've got to try to get results. But sometimes time isn't afforded in the modern day.
"To go through the patches, to try to get growth, to try to get to where you want to, there's always something in the road that catches you and moments and periods, and you have to give people time to do that."
Source : 90min