Aston Villa goalkeeper Brad Friedel says chairman Randy Lerner knows to leave manager Martin O'Neill alone to take care of football affairs.

Friedel said: "I'm sure that if you went to Carrington you would immediately know who was in charge - Sir Alex. I'm sure it would be the same at Arsenal and at ­Chelsea when Mourinho was there. It's the same here with the manager.

"At all those places, one thing would ring absolutely true - and that is that they were the boss."

Friedel says that is a rarer quality than some would have you believe and that at some clubs, you can instantly get the feeling that the manager is not totally in charge.

He added: "That doesn't happen at the solid clubs and it doesn't happen here. The ­manager here is hands-on. He has a presence around the place. It's easy to sum up - he runs the club.

"It doesn't matter what department you work in - he is THE guy. There are clubs when you can tell the manager is not the top guy and that's when things seep through and the cracks appear.

"Make no mistake about it, there is no one here ever in any doubt about who is the boss and you would find that at United.

"He may sometimes act as if he's not sure of something but he doesn't miss a thing. He is a ­fascinating and intelligent man."