Remi Garde takes the reins at Aston Villa looking to arrest a run of seven consecutive defeats, which has left the club anchored to the bottom of the table, four points from safety.
Here, Press Association Sport looks at other lengthy losing runs in the Premier League.
Sunderland, 20 matches, 18/1/2003-10/9/05
Villa have a long way to go to match the worst run, with Sunderland the not-so-proud record holder. The Black Cats suffered 15 consecutive defeats at the end of the 2002/03 season, which not surprisingly resulted in relegation. They were back two seasons later only to lose five more games at the start of the 2005/06 season before finally stopping the sequence with a draw against West Brom.
Sunderland, nine matches, 15/10/05-10/12/05
After three matches without defeat, including a victory over local rivals Middlesbrough, Sunderland endured another miserable losing run that lasted nine matches and two months. They won only three games all season and were relegated again having accumulated just 15 points.
Newcastle, eight matches, 4/3/15-2/5/15
Newcastle were in serious danger of being relegated last season after failing to pick up a point in eight consecutive matches between the beginning of March and the beginning of May. Like with Sunderland, a draw with West Brom stopped the rot and victory over West Ham on the final day ensured they finished four points clear of the bottom three.
Ipswich, eight matches, 28/2/95 and 15/4/95
Ipswich had already had a run of five straight defeats during a miserable season but the nadir came between February and April, when they lost eight in a row. The sequence included their famous 9-0 defeat by Manchester United, the only time any team has lost a Premier League match by nine goals.
Derby, seven matches, 28/10/07-15/12/07
Derby finished the 2007/08 season with only 11 points, the lowest total in Premier League history. They managed just one victory all season, against Newcastle, and lost seven straight matches between October and December, scoring only one goal. The Rams ended the campaign with six consecutive losses.
Source: PA-WIRE
