Money continues for Lambert to be next Aston Villa manager

Paul Lambert was well backed to be Alex McLeish’s replacement as soon as the next Aston Villa manager market opened and this support has continued.

Lambert was initially installed at 8/1 to leave Norwich for Villa Park, but within hours this price had shortened to 5/2.

However, he is now just 6/4 to be appointed new manager.

Although Villa have been linked with the likes of Rafa Benitez and Alan Curbishley, it appears that a young manager with potential is what most appeals to the supporters.

And this time owner Randy Lerner may be slightly more inclined to listen to the fans after they made it clear in advance that McLeish would be a poor appointment.

Lambert certainly fits the criteria, as Norwich were in a slight mess when he took over the reins having just been beaten 7-1 by the Colchester side that he was in charge of.

But he has since turned them round with back-to-back promotions and done remarkably well in the Premier League this season with limited resources and a squad that had very little previous top-flight experience.

Meanwhile, the fact that Lambert is tactically astute, comes across as a born winner and has worked and learnt from managers including Ottmar Hitzfeld during his career, are other positive factors that boost his chances.

Yet it is Roberto Martinez who has gone odds-on at 10/11 to take over at Aston Villa, despite turning the club down previously last season.

Martinez does seem to have an edge over Lambert in a few areas, most notably in Premier League experience and even perhaps in terms of loyalty.

With Premier League vacancies in short supply at present, both would surely be interested in a move to Villa as a further step up the managerial ladder.