COMMENT

Aston Villa have had some outstanding managers in the past.

The likes of Tony Barton, Ron Saunders, George Ramsey and Ron Atkinson are some of the greatest to have ever graced the Villa Park dugout, having established what is one of England's most successful clubs.

You don't win seven First Division titles, seven FA Cups and of course one European Cup without having some of the best leaders in the game.

Steve Bruce could find himself listed among the greats for having helped Villa in their hour of need, but there are still some who doubt the ex-Birmingham boss - who currently has the third best win percentage in the club's history.

However for every great manager that Aston Villa have had, there have also been some absolute shockers - and most of them have come in the last decade as the West Midlands club dropped out of the Premier League for the first time since the rebranding of England's top-flight.

Here, Football Insider names the five worst-ever managers Aston Villa have ever had

Click below to find out who is number five in our list...

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5. Alex McLeish

Bedsheet sales went through the roof between June 2011 and May 2012 thanks to how much Aston Villa fans truly hated that Lerner decided to hire Alex McLeish just five days after he left bitter rivals Birmingham.

McLeish replaced Gerard Houllier after he stepped down from his position at Villa Park due to ill health - and that was perhaps the very first appointment that began Villa's downward spiral as they slipped out of the Premier League.

He won just nine of 42 games in charge but somehow managed to keep the club in the top-flight.

West Brom fans clearly found the funny side though as they finished above their rivals for the first time in Premier League history.

Click below to find out who is number four in our list...

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4. Tim Sherwood

Sherwood talked the talk, but he was never able to walk the walk.

Villa suffered a glut of embarrassments under the former Tottenham man, who only managed to make his win percentage record look decent thanks to Christian Benteke and Fabian Delph.

He took the club to the FA Cup final in 2015 but the start of the 2015/16 season is ultimately what began the worst campaign in the West Midlands club's top-flight history.

Sherwood was found to be completely tactically inept at Villa and has not returned to management since.

Click below to find out who is number three in our list...

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3. Remi Garde

Aston Villa fans still feel a lot of sympathy for Remi Garde as he was thrust into the Villa Park hotseat in the wake of Sherwood's mess.

For some reason, he was offered a three-and-a-half year deal but was sacked after just four months with three wins in 23 games.

Garde walked out of Villa Park just weeks before Villa's relegation was confirmed, leading the former Lyon boss to wait 18 months for his next management job when MLS outfit Montreal Impact came calling last November.

Click below to find out who is number two in our list...

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2. Billy McNeill

Billy McNeill was hired as Aston Villa manager in the wake of Graham Turner's sacking at the start of the 1986/87 season and was the last boss to oversee a relegation before 2016's plunge from the Premier League.

McNeill was highly-regarded at Celtic and Manchester City, but he was a complete failure at Villa as they managed to win just nine of 41 games while he was in charge.

They finished rock bottom of the old Division One having won it just six years earlier.

Click below to find out who is number one in our list...

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1. Roberto di Matteo

Aston Villa would probably be a League One club by now if Tony Xia was not quick to rectify what was easily his worst decision at Villa Park.

Roberto di Matteo won just one of 12 games in charge of the West Midlands club before he was sacked and replaced by Bruce.

The Italian had achieved promotion with West Brom in 2009/10 and stunningly won the Champions League and FA Cup at Chelsea in 2011/12 but his time at Villa Park was truly wretched and fans must be counting their lucky stars that they now have Bruce and look as though they could go back up within weeks.