Randy Lerner has sold Aston Villa to the Recon Group, owned by Chinese businessman Dr Tony Jiantong Xia.

The deal is for 100 per cent ownership and will go through subject to approval by the Premier League and Football League.

American billionaire Randy Lerner, who bought Villa in 2006 for £62.2m, put the club up for sale in 2014.

A club statement said Lerner "sought the right owner to take care of the club and restore fortunes" and believes Xia is an "excellent choice".

The Midlands club's new manager - likely to be Nigel Pearson or Roberto di Matteo - will be announced shortly.

It is understood that the new regime has spoken to Roberto Di Matteo's representatives as their preferred choice as head coach.
Sky Sources report the former Chelsea manager, who has been out of work since resigning from Bundesliga side Schalke 12 months ago, is due to begin talks 'imminently' over a three-year deal.

Xia needs to pass the relevant owners' and directors' test, and provide proof of finance before formally completing his takeover.

BBC Sport's Pat Murphy told BBC Radio 5 live: "Randy Lerner's tenure at the club is over. The new chairman is a prominent businessman and a seriously impressive business leader in China."

Villa will play in the Championship next season following their relegation from the Premier League.

They finished bottom of the table with 17 points, sacking manager Remi Garde at the end of March.

Who is Dr Tony Xia?

He is the owner of Recon Group, a holding company that has the controlling interest in five publicly listed companies on the Hong Kong and Chinese stock exchanges, employing 35,000 people in 75 countries.

After graduating in China, he was among the initial 25 highly-rated graduates out of 1,000 sent to study overseas. He spent six years at Harvard and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, including five months exchange with Oxford University, before returning to China

Xia played football until he finished at college and the sport has remained his passion. He became a Villa fan "many years ago", according to the club's statement, and is "delighted" to become its owner.