Gary Neville has been sacked by Valencia after just four months in charge of the Spanish club, reports the BBC Sport.
The England coach and former Manchester United captain was given the position until the end of the season in December but a return of three wins from 16 league matches has seen the 41-year-old lose his job.
This was Neville’s first foray into club management after a successful career at Old Trafford which saw him win eight Premier League titles and two UEFA Champions League as well as accumulating 85 caps for England, but despite saying he wanted to stay at the Mestalla, he did admit results had “not been to my standards” or those “required by the club”.
Former Liverpool assistant manager Pako Ayestaran, who was brought to the club in February, will take charge of first-team affairs until the end of the season. The decision to bring the 53-year-old in brought questions that Neville was being undermined by certain sections of the media but he insisted that it was his decision to bring Ayestaran to Valencia.
Neville’s young brother Phil is also on the coaching staff but as of yet there has been no decision made about his position.
It can’t have been an easy decision for Valencia owner Peter Lim as he co-owns non-league Salford City along with the Neville brothers and former Manchester United greats Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes.
Neville, who retired as a player in 2011 after over 600 appearances for United, began his managerial career with a defeat to Lyon in the Champions League and it took until February to register his first win.
League form was poor under Neville but wins in the Copa del Rey and the Europa League appeared to ease the pressure somewhat until a 7-0 loss to Barcelona in the semi-final first leg of the Copa del Rey brought calls for him to quit.
Neville leaves six-time Spanish champions Valencia in 14th place in La Liga, just six points clear of the relegation zone with eight games remaining.
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