Carla Ward quit Villa at the end of last season after three years in command in order to take a vacation from the game having led the club to a fifth place in the Women’s Super League, their best-ever finish; Robert de Pauw has also worked with the Dutch FA as a junior coach
In place of Carla Ward, who resigned from her position last month, is 42-year-old De Pauw, the former manager of FC Twente and Bayer Leverkusen. De Pauw, who has also served as a youth coach for the Dutch FA, has been at Leverkusen for the last two years after leading FC Twente to the Dutch league and cup double in 2022.
“We are delighted to welcome Robert to Aston Villa Football Club,” stated Lee Billiard, head of women’s football at Villa: “After an extremely methodical and extensive managerial search, we used a process that took some time and included a thorough search of the best leagues in women’s football.”
“This meticulous process brought us to Robert, who we know has a distinct philosophy and an unquenchable desire to establish a winning culture at the football club,” Billiard continued.
“His development of senior players and younger players, both domestically and internationally, speaks for itself and we are excited to see him get started.”