Sherwood: Players excited by 'new era'

Aston Villa manager Tim Sherwood says his new players are excited by the dawning of a "new era" at the club.

The Villa Park outfit have undergone something of an overhaul during the close-season, with Fabian Delph and Christian Benteke headlining a host of exits, while Jordan Ayew, Jordan Amavi, Micah Richards and Rudy Gestede are among the players to have come in.

And Sherwood believes there is plenty of cause for optimism at the club.

"They [the new players] are right to be excited for the future of the club," he said. "They are a group of young men. It's up to me to make them excited for the immediate future.

"It's a new era. It will take time to gel - but that's my job

"They know what the demands are. I have had time with them over pre-season. They know they can't be a soft touch, they have to dig in.

"You owe it to the fans to give it everything all of the time."

Villa collected a 1-0 win at Bournemouth on the opening day of the Premier League season and host Manchester United in their second fixture on Friday.

"I expect a tough game as you always do against Manchester United," he added. "They have brought in a lot of new players again.

"We fancy ourselves against them. We fancy ourselves against any team. You have to have that mindset."

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