Aston Villa's Paul Lambert: If you quit once, you'll quit twice. I'm not a quitter

There is, of course, some doubt whether he will get the chance to remain but, while the club looks to evolve, the manager endures.

It is unlikely to appease a disaffected fan-base which met yesterday's statement with a mixture of derision and disappointment.

In it Lambert vowed to persevere while Randy Lerner tries to sell the club after their meeting in New York.

The chairman, Lambert and chief executive Paul Faulkner met on Thursday and Friday in the US to discuss the club's short-term future while a buyer is found.

That is still in limbo while any summer transfer plans hinge on one final act of generosity from Lerner.

It has left frustration boiling over after a season which finally drained the last ounce of enthusiasm from a wantaway chairman.

And it has left Lambert tired, weary after a season of almost constant – and occasionally self-inflicted – barbs.

But there is a determination from the Scot to carry on. He is on trial for any new owner and intends to stick around to give himself a fighting chance.

"If you quit once you'll quit twice and if you quit twice you'll quit three times. I'm certainly not a quitter," he said. "The last two years have been really, really hard but the statement last Monday said what it said (that the club was for sale) and the next few weeks and months will be testing that's for sure.

"I went to America with an open mind and honesty. I have always been honest with the chairman and never thought 'I'm not going to say that'.

"I've had to help this football club and I did the best I could do. The main thing was to stay in this league. That was the main situation." Villa survived the Premier League drop by five points this season against a backdrop of unrest on the terraces, poor performances on the pitch and the chairman's commitment continually called into question.

Lambert has tried to shoulder all the responsibility over the last year to protect others which is an admirable tactic but one which has left him open to criticism from all angles.

And he has been wounded, his pride hurt after two seasons of struggle which has seen his reputation – in some eyes – take a hit.

While Brendan Rodgers – who came up with Swansea the same time Lambert won promotion with Norwich in 2011 – revives Liverpool Lambert is barely treading water with Villa.

The pair were mentioned in the same breath two years ago yet clubs would have a hard sell convincing fans Lambert would be the right man for them.

Indeed, Villa are having a tough time proving to their own supporters Lambert should remain in charge.

Yet any manager would have had the same problems the Scot has faced as Lerner cuts back his investment on the pitch.

Lambert was dealt a difficult hand and there has to be some sympathy for a man who arrived at a club already on a decline.

Silence and, at some points, suspicion has not helped his cause this season though and added to the groundswell which is now against him.

But in a climate of change he is at least trying to keep a hand on the tiller, even if it is likely to be a temporary one. For some it is too late, their minds are made up over a manager who was supposed to revitalise the team and failed.

But Lambert has a resolve to carry on to see the job through and his attempts to steady the ship and reunite a fractured fanbase could yet be some of his best work.

"Up until the club is sold it's going to need everyone to pull in the same direction.

"That's vital, to get your sleeves rolled up and meet that challenge," he said.

"It's going to be really, really tough but when you're up for sale you have to wait to see if something happens.

"You keep going. The supporters are going to be vital in this absolutely vital. I understand their frustrations with everything, especially when their football club is for sale. It's not a great place to be in."