Aston Villa owner Randy Lerner is fully committed to the club and his sale of NFL team Cleveland Browns is unconnected, according to Villa chief executive Paul Faulkner.

Faulkner remains convinced that Lerner is loyal to the Midlands club and believes in the project being developed by new manager Paul Lambert.

Faulkner told the Daily Star: "The Browns situation means absolutely nothing with regard to Aston Villa, neither good nor bad.

"The big point that people sometimes forget is that he inherited Cleveland, he bought Villa. Any rumours that he could be thinking about getting out or losing interest is nonsense."

Villa begin their Premier League campaign against West Ham United on August 18.