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Rémi Garde has emerged as the shock favourite to replace the sacked Tim Sherwood at Aston Villa.

The 49-year-old former Arsenal midfielder is currently working as a TV pundit as he takes a sabbatical from management since he left Lyon in 2014 following three seasons in charge.

French TV station Canal+, who he is currently working for, have reported Garde is in talks over the job.

He has previously been linked with the Newcastle job, but has now emerged as the surprise front-runner to take over at Villa Park .

In pictures: Aston Villa 1-2 Swansea

Sherwood was sacked on Sunday morning , just a day after Villa saw a 1-0 lead over Swansea turn into a 2-1 defeat for a sixth straight Premier League defeat, and Sunderland's 3-0 win over Newcastle sent the Villans to the bottom of the table.

David Moyes has also been linked as a possible replacement for Sherwood , who was fired just eight months into the job.

Under-21 manager Kevin MacDonald has been placed in charge on an interim basis.