Tonev signing marks the start of Phase Two of the Lambert revolution...

Aleksandar Tonev, a 23-year-old attacking midfield player has completed a medical and agreed terms today at Bodymoor Heath.

Villa and Polish club Lech Poznan have struck a deal and i's will be dotted and t's crossed next week.

"I am really happy to be part of Aston Villa and I am really proud to be able to pull the shirt on," Tonev said. "Aston Villa is a big club and the manager and club have a belief in young players and in the team ethic. Football is not about the individuals. It's a team sport and all successful teams play well together. That's what you can see at Villa, the team is playing together.

"I am part of the team now and I am hungry for success. I want to show everybody what I can really do. I have played in front of big crowds before but the atmosphere here in England is unique. The crowd is like a 12th player for the team and I am looking forward to playing in front of the fans.

"I can't wait to start and to meet my team-mates and the manager. When I heard about Aston Villa, I thought about playing in the Premier League for such a big club. I wasn't thinking about anything else.

"Stiliyan being here wasn't a massive influence on me coming here. Stiliyan and Dimitar Berbatov have done really well in this league and I hope I can do the same. They are both great Bulgarian players and hopefully I can do the same and make my mark on the Premier League.

"I have been watching Villa and I know there are some very good players here. I am really looking forward to being part of the team."

Stan Petrov added: "I think Villa fans have one exciting player on their hands. I think the Club has been monitoring Aleksandar for a few months, they have watched some games and some DVDs.

"He doesn't have a dominant foot which is really interesting and the main thing about him. He is quick, he is an exciting player and I think Villa fans will see he is a good player. He is the kind of player who can really make an impact in this young, exciting team. We spoke last night and he is really looking forward to it. He knows that it will be a challenge but he is ready for it."

Welcome to the Villa Aleks. 

Great signing!

Stan's the man: Petrov takes on coaching role

Stiliyan Petrov has joined the coaching staff at Aston Villa.

Just a few days after Petrov Day at Villa's last game of the season in Wigan marked his departure as a player, he has a new role at the club

Long time friend Paul Lambert had hinted there would be a place for the midfield maestro on his coaching team, an offer which he has now accepted. He will work as assistant to Villa development coach Gordon Cowans.

"I'm very excited by this new challenge and I wish to thank the club and the manager, Paul Lambert, for giving me the opportunity to continue my association with Villa, which I have always regarded as a privilege.

"I will study for my coaching badges over the coming months and I am looking forward very much to working with Gordon Cowans, someone I know and respect, a true Villa legend.

"My hope is that I can assist Gordon through my own experience in the game and that I can help the young lads to progress, become better players and better human beings. There are important values that we have always stood for at the club and we will continue to do so."

Petrov joined Villa from Scottish Premier League side Celtic in 2006.

For Stan

Stan Petrov Retires

Aston Villa's inspirational club captain, Stiliyan Petrov has retired from football as he continues his battle against leukaemia.

Stan was diagnosed after feeling unwell after a match at the Emirates Stadium in March 2012 but is now in remission.

Everyone associated with villamad.co.uk wishes Stan the very best for the future.

His statement in full:

"I've never been a person for making grand statements. I've only ever got on with my job, while remaining grateful to have great team-mates, great people around me and, most of all, a fantastic family. They have been powerful pillars of support when I have needed them most over the past year. To my wife, Paulina, and my sons, Kristiyan and Stiliyan, I love you very much and I will always for your constant love and support. Also to my mum and dad, my brother and Paulina's mum and the people who have been closest to me throughout this time - you know who you are and I love you all. Each and every day I thank God for giving me the opportunity to still be with my family.

"Football has been the other great love of my life, so it is with a heavy heart that I am announcing my retirement from the game. The emotions are overwhelming really, but the continued support of family, friends and the great people I have come to know will make it easier for me to move on from the only life I've ever known.

"That I am ready to embrace new challenges will make this process much easier. Since being diagnosed with acute leukaemia in March 2012, I have come to understand and appreciate the way in which this disease impacts the lives of so many people. I can help and I want to help and, in setting up a foundation to help address the issues involved when people are diagnosed with this illness, I hope to make a difference. This will be my new challenge, one I will face with all the enthusiasm, energy and drive with which I have faced every single challenge.

"I remember when I was a young player at CSKA Sofia and the good life was all I was interested in. Celtic came in for me and I moved to Glasgow, to another country, to a new world. I didn't speak the language and I thought it would never happen for me. I knew nobody.

"Fortunately, I met people who helped me to turn my life around. I came to know great teammates who showed me the proper way, the way I had to be if I was going to be a serious professional and compete at a high level. I came to appreciate so much the opportunity to work with that level of professional people because it made me something like them. At Celtic Football Club and at Aston Villa Football Club I was privileged to live a life competing at a high level and playing the game I love, supported by the most passionate fans.

"Then something crazy happened, something I thought was just a cold but turned out to be something more serious, something life-changing. I played 90 minutes for Villa against Arsenal at The Emirates and I felt fatigued, not myself at all. But I thought it was nothing serious. The diagnosis by Dr Richard Lovell was a complete shock.

"Around 7,600 people in the UK are diagnosed each year with leukaemia and about 2,300 people with acute leukaemia. Fortunately, I was able to make decisions very quickly and I started my treatment quickly. I needed to. My leukaemia is now in remission and I have finished my high intensity treatment. From now on I'll be on the softer treatment, which is two years on tablets. I feel lucky. Not everyone is as lucky as I have been.

"For this I need to thank Professor David Linch at University College London Hospital, his PA Teresa Macdonald and all of the nurses and staff at that wonderful institution. Thank you also to Professor Charlie Craddock, Sandeep Nagra and all of the nurses who have looked after me at University Hospital and Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham.

"For the life I've lived in football, I will always be incredibly grateful. For the opportunity this crazy thing that happened in my life has given me, I also feel grateful in a strange kind of way. This crazy thing, somehow, has touched people and I want to try to channel this in a positive way. This will be the greatest challenge of my life.

"I wish to thank the fans of Aston Villa and the Villa chairman, Randy Lerner, chief executive Paul Faulkner and manager Paul Lambert, also the fans of Celtic, the Bulgarian fans and fans of football all over the world who have helped me through the past year with their incredible displays of support and with their personal, moving messages. I would also like to thank all of the managers I have worked under and all of the team-mates I have played alongside. I loved playing football with all of you and you will always remain in my heart. Also to the agents who represented me, including my current agents Base Soccer. I am moving on and I am excited by this. There is a deep joy in my heart because of what you have shared with me, not only in this past year but over the years I have been in football. I felt privileged. I still do. I always will."

Marathon man Gough set for new challenge in support of Stan

Villa fan Pete Gough is embarking on a new challenge in support.of Stiliyan Petrov.

This summer he is running from Celtic Park to Villa Park to raise money for Cure Leukaemia. You can support Pete on his epic challenge by visiting http://www.justgiving.com/pete-gough3 or texting "VILA91" + your amount to 70070.