He was first choice of new Villa owner Tony Xia despite takeover delay

The Italian won the FA Cup and Champions League with Chelsea in 2012

Roberto Di Matteo will be confirmed as Aston Villa boss on Thursday

Roberto Di Matteo will officially be confirmed as Aston Villa’s new manager, having agreed an initial two-year deal that includes a £2m bonus if he gets Villa back into the Premier League.

The 46-year-old Italian won the Champions League as Chelsea boss in 2012 but hasn’t worked in management since resigning as the manager of Schalke in the Bundesliga a little more than a year ago.

He was the first choice of Villa’s new owner-in-waiting, Tony Xia, and although Xia’s takeover still looks a few weeks from competition, Di Matteo’s appointment will be confirmed.

Roberto Di Matteo will officially be confirmed as Aston Villa’s new manager on Thursday morning

He has agreed an initial two-year deal that includes a £2m bonus if he gets Villa back into the Premier League

The Italian won an FA Cup and Champions League double as caretaker boss at Chelsea in 2012

Sources close to Chinese businessman Xia insist that his £52m buyout of Randy Lerner is progressing as planned, saying rumours that the purchase has hit rocks are wide of the mark.

Xia has told Sportsmail that he has lodged the cash for Lerner in escrow (a ring-fenced bank account) and is in the process of transferring more than £50m extra into an HSBC bank account in Birmingham to meet Villa’s working capital requirements for the next year.

Xia’s representatives have begun the process of providing the Premier League and Football League with proof of his resources, including bank deposits in China purportedly in excess of £500m.

The authorities also want proof of Xia’s other credentials - such as studying at Harvard - and are being provided with them.

The Premier League are taking the lead in vetting Xia as a ‘fit and proper’ person because Villa could theoretically be back among the elite by next Spring and the League don’t want a ‘nightmare scenario’ of ‘dodgy owner’ to deal with later.

Di Matteo will be given a summer transfer kitty running to several tens of millions of pounds, as and when the takeover goes ahead. His contract with Villa will be valid regardless.

Chinese businessman Tony Xia's £52m buyout of owner Randy Lerner is progressing as planned