Former Aston Villa chairman Doug Ellis believes that Alex McLeish deserves the chance to prove his worth as manager and that sacking the Scotsman would be "foolish".

The former Birmingham City boss has come under increasing pressure from the supporters after the Midlands side slumped to just three points above the relegation zone.

"It would be foolish for McLeish to go," Ellis told the Birmingham Mail. "Despite the fact most of the fans are upset he came from Birmingham, McLeish is a good manager.

"The game is not about management, it is about players. Villa have three, four, five established first-team players who are injured and we have to bring in the kids.

"But they will not go down. Villa have three more matches, a three-point gap above the bottom three, a better goal difference, and need three points to be certain."

Villa owner Randy Lerner and chief executive Paul Faulkner released a joint statement expressing their support of McLeish.