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Tony Xia: Prepare for a "new age" Aston Villa fans

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New Villa owner Tony Xia has told supporters to prepare for a "new age" and vowed to transform the relegated club into one of the world's best.

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Xia's buy-out of the claret and blues from Randy Lerner is expected to be ratified within the next two to three weeks and the Beijing-based businessman has wasted little time in outlining his lofty ambitions.

The 39-year-old will hand the club's new manager, expected to be either Roberto Di Matteo or Nigel Pearson, between £20-50million in order to recruit around "six or seven" players this summer and revamp the current squad.

Xia told the Guardian: "My ambition is to bring Villa to the top six in less than five years and I hope it can be (one of) the top three in the world – even the best well known in the world – in less than 10 years.

He added: "Forget the past and think we are going to enter into a new age. The first priority is to get promoted. I feel a lot of pressure. I think a lot of Villa fans are eager to get back up to the Premiership, so the next one year will be very tough for me. I hope we can do it."

Xia claims he made his fortune working on infrastructure projects in China before taking over the Recon Group, the holding company behind the takeover. His first big decision at Villa will be the appointment of a manager, with the new owner thought to currently favour former Albion and Chelsea boss Di Matteo.

Pearson however is the preferred choice of outgoing chairman Steve Hollis, who will make a case for the former Leicester manager when consultations with Xia continue next week.

Hollis met with Pearson, who has been out of work since leaving the Foxes last summer, after Villa whittled down an initial list of 50 candidates and the 52-year-old would have been appointed manager by the end of the month had takeover talks stalled. Instead, he now finds himself in limbo.

"To be fair to the preferred candidate, he has acted to a very mature way," said Hollis. "He fully understands the process that we're going through and how it's really important that he has, if he's going to go forward, the full support of the new owners."

Villa's managerial search was headed up by former player and manager Brian Little, together with former FA executive Adrian Bevington, who assisted the board in an advisory capacity.

"Let's see what happens next week," continued Hollis. "The process we've gone through is extremely thorough.

"Not only were there 50 candidates, there was also a very long list of the qualities that people who have done well in the Championship have.

"This has been a thorough process and it's a key decision for the club.

"Once the fit and proper is over the line it's then Tony's club and he will make the decisions. What will happen in the meantime is we will consult.

"What I will not do is make decisions or put in place things that are not helpful to Tony, so we will consult."

and vowed to transform the relegated club into one of the world's best.more

Xia's buy-out of the claret and blues from Randy Lerner is expected to be ratified within the next two to three weeks and the Beijing-based businessman has wasted little time in outlining his lofty ambitions.

The 39-year-old will hand the club's new manager, expected to be either Roberto Di Matteo or Nigel Pearson, between £20-50million in order to recruit around "six or seven" players this summer and revamp the current squad.

Xia told the Guardian: "My ambition is to bring Villa to the top six in less than five years and I hope it can be (one of) the top three in the world – even the best well known in the world – in less than 10 years.

He added: "Forget the past and think we are going to enter into a new age. The first priority is to get promoted. I feel a lot of pressure. I think a lot of Villa fans are eager to get back up to the Premiership, so the next one year will be very tough for me. I hope we can do it."

Xia claims he made his fortune working on infrastructure projects in China before taking over the Recon Group, the holding company behind the takeover. His first big decision at Villa will be the appointment of a manager, with the new owner thought to currently favour former Albion and Chelsea boss Di Matteo.

Pearson however is the preferred choice of outgoing chairman Steve Hollis, who will make a case for the former Leicester manager when consultations with Xia continue next week.

Hollis met with Pearson, who has been out of work since leaving the Foxes last summer, after Villa whittled down an initial list of 50 candidates and the 52-year-old would have been appointed manager by the end of the month had takeover talks stalled. Instead, he now finds himself in limbo.

"To be fair to the preferred candidate, he has acted to a very mature way," said Hollis. "He fully understands the process that we're going through and how it's really important that he has, if he's going to go forward, the full support of the new owners."

Villa's managerial search was headed up by former player and manager Brian Little, together with former FA executive Adrian Bevington, who assisted the board in an advisory capacity.

"Let's see what happens next week," continued Hollis. "The process we've gone through is extremely thorough.

"Not only were there 50 candidates, there was also a very long list of the qualities that people who have done well in the Championship have.

"This has been a thorough process and it's a key decision for the club.

"Once the fit and proper is over the line it's then Tony's club and he will make the decisions. What will happen in the meantime is we will consult.

"What I will not do is make decisions or put in place things that are not helpful to Tony, so we will consult."