Aston Villa have announced the appointment of Roberto Di Matteo as the club's new manager.

The 46-year-old, who has been out of work since May last year following a seven-month spell in charge of Schalke 04, is believed to have signed a two-year deal.

Di Matteo heads to Villa Park with plenty of coaching experience in England having had spells in charge of MK Dons, West Bromwich Albion and Chelsea, where he guided the team to Champions League glory in 2012.

Following his appointment at Villa, Di Matteo told the club's official website: "It's a wonderful honour for me to become manager of this great football club and I'm looking forward to the challenge of taking Aston Villa back to its rightful place."

Villa, who were relegated to the Championship this season, have been hunting for a new manager following the departure of Remi Garde in March.

Di Matteo's appointment has been made under the new ownership of Chinese businessman Dr Tony Xia, who agreed a £60m takeover last month.