Ancelotti for Aston Villa?

Former Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti has emerged as a contender for the vacant manager’s position at Aston Villa.

Ancelotti was sacked by Chelsea after the London club failed to defend their English Premier League title and suffered a quarter-final exit in the Champions League to Manchester United.

Villa are on the hunt for a new boss after they parted ways with Gerard Houllier on Wednesday because of concerns over the 63-year-old’s health.

The Frenchman suffered a heart scare in April and was forced to miss the club’s final five matches of the season with Gary McAllister standing in.

Dutchman Guus Hiddink, however, remains the name most frequently linked with the job at Stamford Bridge.

Hiddink is in charge of the Turkish national team, and was briefly in charge of Chelsea in 2009 following the sacking of Luiz Felipe Scolari.

Turkey are struggling in qualification for the Euro 2012 and defeat against Belgium on Friday would all but end their hopes of making it to Poland and Ukraine next summer.

Meanwhile across west London, another Premier League club are seeking a new manager after Mark Hughes resigned from his Fulham post on Thursday.

The former Chelsea and Manchester United forward was immediately linked with the Villa job, but the club have denied any interest in the Welshman.