New Aston Villa board member David Bernstein has admitted that manager Remi Garde is faced with a "very tough job".
Reports have surfaced suggesting that the Frenchman could leave the club during the international break having failed to lift the Villans off the bottom of the table since succeeding Tim Sherwood in November.
Bernstein revealed that he was impressed with Garde when he met him, but refused to give any assurances over his future.
"I had two-and-a-half hours with him at my home last Wednesday. He came down and I had a very good meeting with him," Bernstein told reporters.
"He is a very civilised, dedicated, professional and passionate person. I have only met him once and I've got a lot of respect for him already but he's got a very tough job on."
Villa are currently 12 points adrift of safety with just seven games of the season remaining.
