West Bromwich Albion manager Darren Moore has been sacked, despite the promotion contenders currently lying fourth in the Championship.
Moore's assistants, Graeme Jones and Wayne Jacobs, have also been dismissed with first-team coach James Shan taking over in the interim as the club seek to appoint a permanent successor.
Albion have won just four of their last 12 Championship matches, with the decision coming hours after a 1-1 draw with Ipswich Town on Saturday hampered hopes of securing an automatic promotion spot.
In a statement, Albion chief executive Mark Jenkins said: “This has been an enormously difficult decision for a Club which will always hold Darren in such high regard.
“He took over at a very difficult time last season and reunited the Club, a contribution that will never be forgotten.
“But we have made it clear from the outset that everything this season was geared to making as swift a return to the Premier League as possible.
“Unfortunately Darren has not been able to engineer the consistency of form and results to convince the board that this objective would be met.
“After discussions with our owners, the difficult decision to make a change was taken. Darren’s dedication over the last 12 months is not underestimated and there will always be a welcome for him at The Hawthorns.
“But we have to place the Club’s best interests at the forefront of our thinking and we must do everything we can to try to deliver the promotion we have targeted."
It's understood that Moore was sacked in the boardroom by Jenkins and technical director Luke Dowling over an hour after the game.
The club have indicated that they intend to identify a replacement for Moore as soon as possible, with former Fulham boss Slavisa Jokanovic linked with the post.
Former Albion defender Moore was a popular replacement for Alan Pardew in April last year and was widely praised for the way in which he went about his first job in management.
But after initially looking strong contenders for a return to the top-flight, the Baggies' form ebbed and they suffered costly back-to-back defeats to rivals Sheffield United and Leeds.
The failure to beat rock-bottom Ipswich would deal Moore's Baggies role the fatal blow, extending their winless league run at The Hawthorns back to Boxing Day.
Moore, who made over 100 playing appearances for the club between 2001 and 2006, had given no indication of his impending departure at his post-match press conference.
Moore said: "Nobody is going to give West Bromwich Albion the right to win. We have to go and earn it and find it. So we will continue trying to work towards that."
Big names including Gary Lineker and Ian Wright were among those to express surprise at the decision.
Lineker tweeted: "What???? Darren Moore sacked? You're 4th."
Additional reporting by PA
