Steven Gerrard has commented for the first time on his Aston Villa exit this week.

The gaffer was sacked from his head coach position after a 3-0 away defeat to Fulham on Thursday night which left the team 17th in the EPL table.

Gerrard has released a statement via his Instagram page, expressing his thanks and best wishes to the club.

The statement reads: “I would like to thank everyone connected to Aston Villa Football Club, for the support shown to me during my time there. I would personally like to thank the board of directors, the players and all the staff for their hard work.

“To the fans, it is regrettable that it didn’t work out in the end, but I owe you a debt of gratitude for the way you welcomed me into your club, and continued to push the team on during difficult times. Aston Villa is a club with a special history, I really wanted to bring back those memorable achievements, unfortunately it wasn’t to be. I wish everyone at the club all the very best for the future.”

Meanwhile, Villa have announced that Aaron Danks, who was employed under Dean Smith previously, will take charge of the team for Sunday’s Premier League match against Brentford at Villa Park and will be supported by additional Bodymoor Heath technical and coaching staff.