Gary O’Neil has been sacked as Bournemouth head coach just seven months after he was appointed permanently, the club has confirmed.
O’Neil led Bournemouth to 15th in the Premier League, five points clear of relegation and was nominated for the Premier League Manager of the Month in April.
The Englishman was appointed as interim manager at the end of August and was appointed permanently under Bill Foley’s regime in November on an 18-month contract.
The 40-year-old had a win percentage of 29.7%, the worst since Paul Groves in 2012, and lost four of his last four games.
In a club statement, Bill Foley said: “As a club, we have put plans in place for long-term success with improvements being made to infrastructure, most notably the development of a new state-of-the-art training facility and the ongoing discussions around upgrades to our stadium.
"We have also identified a number of significant targets in the transfer market this summer and believe this change in direction will provide us with the best platform from which to build.
"Gary will go on to have a long career as a head coach or manager, but we feel that, at this moment in time, a change is in the best interests of this football club. I would like to place on record my thanks to Gary and wish him all the best for the future."
Bournemouth are expected to announce O'Neil's successor imminently, with Graham Potter the current bookies favourite.