Aston Villa suspend Lambert's assistants

Aston Villa announced on Tuesday they had suspended assistant manager Ian Culverhouse and head of football operations Gary Karsa, without providing further explanation. "The club can confirm that Gordon Cowans and Shay Given have been temporarily promoted to assist manager Paul Lambert and his first-team coaching staff," read a statement on the club website. "The club can also confirm in response to media speculation that Ian Culverhouse and Gary Karsa have been suspended pending an internal investigation." Manager Paul Lambert said he was looking forward to working alongside former Villa players Cowans and Given ahead of Saturday's home game with Southampton, but did not comment on the suspensions of Culverhouse and Karsa. "I'm delighted to have Gordon and Shay to assist me in preparing the team for Saturday, which is what the whole group is focused on," he said in the statement. Villa are currently 14th in the Premier League, four points above the relegation places with five games to play. Source: AFP