Permission Granted: Aston Villa get green light to speak to Gerrard and empty Ibrox backroom staff

Aston Villa have been given permission to speak to Steven Gerrard as the final jigsaw pieces of his Ibrox departure falls into place.

Over the last 24 hours the story has developed rapidly with an appointment expected before the weekend.

Gerrard has kept quiet since Sunday’s win over Ross County but was caught on video getting off a train in London at lunchtime today.

So far there has been silence from Ibrox with just a few unconvincing messages sent to favoured media sources claiming that no approach has been made.

Tonight at 5.22pm The Telegraph reported:

Steven Gerrard is on the verge of taking over at Aston Villa after Rangers cleared him for talks with the Premier League club.

The former Liverpool and England captain is set to leave Rangers and join Villa with official confirmation of his appointment expected in the next 48 hours.

Gerrard quickly emerged as Villa’s No. 1 target after the dismissal of Dean Smith on Sunday and, after a period of due diligence, the Midlands club made their move today.

The 41 year old is poised to quit Rangers after three-and-a-half years in charge, winning the Scottish Premiership title last season, and he will take the majority of his backroom staff south of the border.

Gerrard’s highly-regarded assistants Gary McAllister, who has previously worked at Villa under Gerard Houllier, and Michael Beale will both be joining, while other members of staff including set-piece specialist Tom Culshaw and Head of Performance Jordan Milsom could also be included in the compensation deal.

Taking Beale, McAllister, Culshaw and Milsom to Villa will leave Sporting Director Ross Wilson with a massive task to find a new management team.

Graeme Murty has already had two disastrous stints as a caretaker but would be a difficult appointment to present to the players and supporters.

Before November is out Sevco face a League Cup semi-final against Hibs, Europa League tie against Sparta Prague then SPFL matches away to Livingston and Hibs.

Some good news for the next manager is that Ryan Jack has come through unscathed from Sunday’s substitute appearance against Ros County, his first appearance in nine months following knee surgery.