English Premier League club West Ham have sacked manager Manuel Pellegrini.
The decision comes with the Hammers slipping to their fourth straight home defeat against Leicester on Sunday (NZ time), to now lie one point above the relegation zone.
"Joint-Chairmen David Sullivan and David Gold, along with the board and everyone at West Ham United, would like to place on record their thanks to Manuel for his service over the past 18 months," the club said in a statement.
"It is with great disappointment that we've had to make this decision. Manuel is a gentleman and it has been a real pleasure to work with someone of his calibre.
"However it has become clear that a change is required to get the club back on track in line with our ambitions this season.
"We felt it was necessary to act now in order to give the new manager as much time as possible to try and achieve that goal.
Pellegrini said a fortnight ago he was confident he retained the backing of the club's board despite just a single win in 10 games and critics suggesting he was one more loss from losing his job.
Pellegrini was at the time defiant during a flurry of media questions about his future but open and honest.
"In this profession, you always have a contract because you are a very good manager and you are sacked because you are a very bad manager," he said.
"Maybe some teams do the change too soon. I don't know."
Reuters
