'It’s All Set Up For A Big Summer At Villa'
- Leicester City host Aston Villa at King Power Stadium on Saturday (3pm kick-off)
- Ashley Preece from Birmingham Live has previewed the clash for LCFC Radio
- Fans can listen to live coverage of the match on LCFC.com and @LCFC social media
The legendary former Liverpool midfielder won the Scottish Premiership in his first managerial posting at Rangers last season, before taking the Villa job in November. The likes of Lucas Digne and Calum Chambers joined the club in the winter, while the loan signing of Philippe Coutinho made headlines too.
After a sudden revival of fortunes under the ex-England captain, Villa are now on a four-game losing streak in the Premier League, but Preece believes all focus is now on finishing the season in a positive fashion ahead of what is anticipated to be a big summer at Villa Park.
They next face Leicester City at King Power Stadium on Saturday (3pm kick-off).
"It started brilliantly," the Birmingham Live reporter told LCFC Radio's Matchday Live. "He really transformed everything after Villa came into that on the back of five straight defeats. Dean Smith got the sack and then it was a big appointment to get Gerrard in from Ibrox. He started wonderfully.
"He won his first couple of games, against Brighton and Palace, and then they gave Man City a real good go as well. It boded well and the supporters were on board. He totally transformed everything and then he hit a bit of a sticky patch. It’s been very up and down.
"They’re on the back of four straight defeats now, so Villa seem to win three and then lose four, it’s been so inconsistent of late. Defensively, they haven’t been good enough, and up front they’re not taking their chances. You can get punished in this league and Villa are finding that out the hard way.
"Villa are down to 15th now so it’s concerning of late. They’re going to Leicester with a bit of pressure because they need to get back to winning ways. It’s been a mixed bag but, Gerrard himself, he’s handled himself really well.
"The team have played some lovely stuff and, in that first 45 minutes, they battered Spurs, but just couldn’t take their chances. When you’ve got Son and Kane doing what they do, you get punished in brutal fashion.
"It’s been inconsistent, but there are shoots of success. With seven games to go, the players want to show Gerrard and the club that they mean business and want to be here next season. It’s all set up for a big summer."
It's been a tough spell for the Villans, who have dipped to 15th in the league. Preece, though, believes excitement is already building for what the future has in store under Gerrard's leadership.
"The 4-0 at home to Southampton sticks out, Villa were rampant that day," he continued. "A few days later, they backed it up against Leeds away, winning 3-0. They were flying at that stage and had won away at Brighton before that, so three on the bounce and it was looking rosy.
"They could have pushed the top seven or eight and finished strongly. I think Villa are struggling against sides above them in the table. They went to West Ham and fell short, at Arsenal as well, and Wolves too. Leicester have done that for years now (beating teams high in the table), Villa need to do that.
"He plays a narrow system. He has tinkered with it, he plays two no.10s. Sometimes he plays one No.10 and two No.9s. He mixes up his forward three quite a lot. He can be adaptable.
"In his interview with Gary Neville on The Overlap, he said he wants to be adaptable depending on which team they’re playing again. Up at Rangers, you can dominate the ball every week and it’s pretty much the same every week.
"Coming down to the Premier League, you play Leicester one week, Norwich the next, and you need to play different systems. I don’t think he does know his best team just yet, especially given the form of some players.
"Danny Ings and Ollie Watkins are great Premier League players at times, but they’ve been a bit hit and miss to be fair. They’re missing chances they didn’t do previously. Coutinho’s a really good signing. He’s shown what a player he can be, but again, some of them are blowing hot and cold.
"There is likely to be a big overhaul of players in the summer. The Villa team you see tomorrow will look totally different come the start of next season and I think for Gerrard this summer, his first big window in charge, it’s his first chance to shape his own squad so it’ll look totally different.
"He wants some big players in. He wants some experience in there, he wants to raise the age profile a little bit. He wants players who have been in the Champions League and in European big leagues to come in and really raise it. Villa’s quite a young team. He wants experienced pedigree to come in."
All times BST.