Thursday 13 August 2015 13:35, UK
Tim Sherwood says he is grateful for the financial backing he has received this summer from Aston Villa chairman Randy Lerner.
Villa have already spent over £40m in the transfer market, a figure that is expected to rise this week with the signing of Barcelona’s Adama Traore.
Rudy Gestede, Jordan Veretout, Idrissa Gueye, Jordan Ayew and Jordan Amavi are among the club’s new arrivals as Sherwood attempts to rebuild his squad following the high-profile departures of Christian Benteke and Fabian Delph.
Sherwood, who took charge at Villa Park in February, was quick to heap praise on Lerner, and the American’s new policy of investment.
"He doesn't have to talk. He is showing it by his actions that he is willing to back this football club and take us in the correct direction," said the former Tottenham manager.
"I think a football club is like a player, you're always for sale depending on what someone wants to pay. If someone wants to pay a huge amount of money and Randy decides he wants to sell then it's his decision.
"In the meantime he is not sitting on his hands, he is actively trying to do something to improve this club.
"It's good the club have backed me and it needed change. We have sold a lot of players and we brought in a lot of money. The owner has not put that back in to his pocket, he has reinvested it into the squad."
Villa have bought six foreign players since the start of July and Sherwood says he will continue to look abroad for signings, rather than pay inflated prices for English players.
“Some of these foreign boys we've gone for are better than the English ones,” said Sherwood.
“They've played a lot more games at a very young age. You look at the English boys and they've played five games and they cost the amount of a guy who's played 200 games in Ligue 1. It doesn't add up."
Villa began their Premier League campaign with a 1-0 win over Bournemouth and Sherwood is hopeful of recording back-to-back victories when his side host Manchester United live on Sky Sports 2 HD on Friday.
"I expect a tough game like you always do against Manchester United. It's a transition period for them again, as it was last season,” he said.
“They have brought in a lot of new players. I think every team has their own problems early in the season. It's never fluid but we fancy ourselves against Manchester United. We fancy ourselves against any team.
“That's the way we have to be, you have to have that mentality that you can go impose yourself on the opposition and that's what we intend to do.”
Villa will be without Carlos Gil (ankle), Jack Grealish (hamstring) and Jores Okore (knee) who have all failed to recover in time to face Louis van Gaal's side.
