Mark Bosnich: Dean Smith's appointment is exactly what Aston Villa need

Villa sacked Steve Bruce last week following the side's 3-3 draw with Rotherham, and went on to lose 2-1 to Millwall under caretaker boss Kevin MacDonald ahead of the international break.

But Villa have turned to Smith and former captain John Terry to help steer the club back in the right direction, starting with the game against Swansea next weekend.

Despite being linked with some big names in Thierry Henry and Brendan Rodgers, Bosnich believes the decision to bring Smith in was the right one.

"I think it's a very good appointment, obviously he's got experience in the Championship, he's also got John Terry there now as assistant." he told TalkSPORT.

"It's not the appointment that's going to be up in lights in terms of what some of the people that were thrown around, that were mentioned in terms of big names."

"But I think that's exactly what they need right this moment in time."

The 46-year-old, who spent seven years at Villa Park before signing for Manchester United admits that Villa still need to get over their play-off disappointment, and give Smith a chance to try and get the side promoted.

"At the end of the day, results will tell the story. I still think they're suffering a hangover from losing that play-off game last season but they've just got to put that behind them."

"Yes, they should be in the Premier League but the bottom line is they're not. They had years and years of warning that was going to happen and that they were going to get relegated.

"Now it's a clean sheet. John Terry knows the club from being there last season and Dean Smith will have his ideas. The idea is basically, just get promoted.

"Things aren't going well, we know that. But if you look at the table, if you're talking about play-off spots, Sheffield Wednesday in sixth, so they're still only four points off that.

"Obviously the fans weren't happy, new owners have come in to the club, they've made the appointment now and they just have to get behind the team as much as they possibly can.

"They've just got to get cracking, and when I say get cracking that means the manager and the assistant.

"They weren't far off last season, so there's no reason why they can't do it this season - there's still a long way to go."