Former Newcastle United manager John Carver has confirmed he has applied for the vacant managerial position at Aston Villa.

The Villans are currently without a permanent boss after sacking Remi Garde in midweek after a poor run of results.

Eric Black has been handed the reins on a temporary basis but Carver wants to take over in the coming days.

Villa sit bottom of the Premier League and look destined to play in the Championship next season but Carver insists the job is still attractive to him.

He told Sky Sports News HQ: “I have had a long lay-off, I am ready to go again. Aston Villa is a fantastic football club and I would say there will be at least 100 applications for this job.

“Anyone who has got any ambition to be a manager or a coach at a club like Aston Villa will apply for it and I am no different. It is a football club that needs rebuilding and that’s something that interests me, but obviously the people at the top will make the decisions.

“Let’s not forget there are some huge candidates out there, some big names with a lot more experience than I’ve got. But sometimes you have to go for things because you have to been given an opportunity and have faith in the people trying to appoint the manager.”

Carver won just three of his 20 matches in charge of Newcastle last season but he did manage to keep the club in the top flight on the final day after a 2-0 win over West Ham