Tony Xia explains why owning Aston Villa is tougher than first expected

By Amir Mir

Tony Xia has admitted that the task of taking Aston Villa forward has been tougher than first expected after he had plans to take the club into Europe within the next five years.

Soon after the Chinese Tycoon took charge of the club, he was hoping to take the Championship side into the top six of the Premier League and become one of the top three club's in the world within next 10 years.

But after his £75 million takeover from Randy Lerner, the Chinese businessman has found difficulties in finding success straightway, despite his ambitious plan.

"It was a plan and now we're working on all things toward it though starting is tougher than expected," Xia admitted on his personal Twitter account.

Here is a supporter asking Xia about his ambitious plan.

Roberto Di Matteo's side have suffered two defeats in two games, most notably against League Two side Luton Town in the EFL Cup on Wednesday night.

It forced an angry reaction from Xia who claimed some players were not worthy of a chance , after the club's humiliating defeat.

As Di Matteo plans for instant promotion to the Premier League he now has the task of guiding the club to their first competitive win since February when they take on Rotherham on Saturday afternoon.

In other Aston Villa team news, former striker Andy Gray has revealed why he is worried about the club's current owner.