Aston Villa chairman Randy Lerner admits he has an informal relationship with manager Martin O'Neill over the Ulsterman's contract situation.

O'Neill is on a one-year rolling deal at Aston Villa and Lerner admits that "he has not had a single word of discussion about Martin's contract since he arrived at the club".

He added: "I am not exactly sure of the triggers for the contract to continue to move forward.

"My understanding of Martin O'Neill is that he is very happy managing Villa. That is what is driving his commitment and that is stronger than any formal written understanding."