Aston Villa of the Premier League have sacked their manager Steven Gerrard, the club announced on Thursday, after their 3-0 loss to Fulham at Craven Cottage in Fulham, England.

"Aston Villa Football Club can confirm that Head Coach Steven Gerrard has left the club with immediate effect," Villa said in a statement. "We would like to thank Steven for his hard work and commitment and wish him well for the future."

When Gerrard was appointed as Villa's manager in November 2021, he signed a three-year contract. The club won 10 of the 28 games under his managing with five draws and 13 losses. Villas ranked 14th on the standings table in the end with 45 points. They avoided relegation but secured no qualification for any European tournament.

Villa invested 70 million euros (about $68.2 million) in lineup enhancements, including acquiring center-back Diego Carlos from Sevilla for 31 million euros (about $30.2 million), left winger Philippe Coutinho from Barcelona for 20 million euros and defensive midfielder Leander Dendoncker from Wolverhampton Wanderers for 15 million euros (about $14.6 million).

However, Villa has only won two of their 11 Premier League games so far with three draws and six losses, ranking 17th on the standings table. They share the same points with Wolverhampton Wanderers and are one and three points respectively above Leicester City and Nottingham Forest. All three teams are in the relegation zone.

"I thought I picked a team that could build on the performance [against Chelsea] at the weekend, but I got the opposite," Gerrard told Amazon Prime after Thursday's defeat. "We were second best for the majority of the first half and were lucky to still be in the game at half-time, it was down to our keeper making some outstanding saves."

"The performance was nowhere near good enough. Tonight was a tough night for me personally. We will see what happens but I understand the situation we are in," he added.