West Ham United have sacked Manuel Pellegrini after a home defeat to Leicester today (December 28).

The club lost 2-1 at the London Stadium, after nine changes were made from the side that suffered a devastating 4-0 defeat to Liverpool on Boxing Day.

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Today’s result means that West Ham have matched their club record run of four successive home defeats in the Premier League after having also lost to Arsenal, Tottenham and Newcastle in recent weeks.

Making matters worse, they also have achieved nine defeats in their last 12 games, leaving them 17th in the Premier League table with relegation looming heavy on the minds of fans and players. 

The successive losses were enough to prompt club bosses to part with the former Premier League title winner after 18 months as manager. A statement was made on behalf of the club to announce the news which read:

“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 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.”

Speculation is now rife on who will replace Pellegrini, with David Moyes being tipped by the bookies to return to the Hammers.

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Manuel Pellegrini has been sacked as manager of West Ham. Credit: Sky Sports.