Aston Villa owner Tony Xia recovering after heart surgery

The Beijing businessman confirmed yesterday he had undergone a procedure, tweeting a picture of himself in a hospital bed.

Xia wrote: “Done a cardiology surgery today been worried for twenty years. It tells that once there’s any problem, we can’t escape, have to solve it.”

The 40-year-old gave no further details of his condition or the circumstances surrounding it, while Villa made no formal statement after being contacted over the matter. It is not expected Xia’s situation will have any impact on the day-to-day running of the club.

Villa have, meanwhile, confirmed they will visit Germany as part of their pre-season programme.

Steve Bruce’s men will take part in the Schauinsland-Reisen tournament, a mini-competition hosted by MSV Duisburg, on Sunday July 23 (kick-off 1pm).

Teams play in two matches, each lasting 45 minutes. MSV Duisburg, Werder Bremen, FC Koln and Malaga are the other clubs scheduled to take part. Villa will also face Dutch outfit Vitesse Arnhem in a friendly on Tuesday July 25. A time and venue is yet to be finalised.