West Ham United say David Moyes deserves 'great respect' as former Sunderland boss leaves club

Moyes replaced Slaven Bilic on a short-term contract with the Hammers languishing in the bottom three.

They finished 13th despite significant supporter and boardroom unrest off the pitch.

It was the Scot's first managerial role since his dismal spell on Wearside, and joint-chairman David Sullivan says he deserves 'great respect' as he departs.

Sullivan said: "I would like to place on record my sincere thanks to David Moyes and his staff for achieving the target of keeping West Ham United in the Premier League.

"Throughout his time here, David has carried himself with dignity and honesty and we have all found him to be a pleasure to work with. He, Alan, Stuart and Billy accepted the challenge and attacked it head on, turning around a difficult situation. They deserve great respect for the job they have done and they leave the Club with our best wishes.

"When David and his team arrived, it was the wish of both parties that the focus be only on the six months until the end of the season, at which point a decision would be made with regards to the future. Having taken stock of the situation and reflected now the campaign is complete, we feel that it is right to move in a different direction.

"We are already taking steps to identify and recruit the manager we believe can take West Ham United forward in line with our ambitions. We aim to appoint a high-calibre figure who we feel will lead the Club into an exciting future for our loyal supporters within the next ten days."

Billy McKinlay has also left the club, alongside Alan Irvine and Stuart Pearce.

Moyes brought McKinlay to Wearside in a scouting capacity but he took over as joint caretaker manager when Simon Grayson left the club last year.

He then followed Moyes to West Ham, leaving Robbie Stockdale to oversee games against Middlesbrough and Millwall.