Stoke City have confirmed manager Tony Pulis has left the Premier League club by mutual consent with immediate effect.

The Welshman guided Stoke into the Premier League during his second spell at the helm and later led them to an FA Cup final and into Europe.

But the Potters were dragged into relegation trouble last season and Pulis drew criticism from some sections of the Britannia Stadium support over his side’s style of play.

A brief club statement read: “Stoke City and Tony Pulis confirm that they have mutually agreed that Tony will leave the Club with immediate effect.”

Earlier, Stoke winger Matt Etherington had warned fans to be careful what they wish for as news of the manager’s imminent departure began to circulate.

“I’ve spoken to a few of the other boys and they’re shocked as well, it’s hit us,” he told talkSPORT.

“Fans were grumbling saying they wanted him out or wanted a change but it looks like they have got their wish.

“You have to be careful what you wish for in football sometimes. You look at Charlton under Alan Curbishley and look where they are now.

“Hopefully it won’t go that way for us, hopefully we’ll get someone in who will push us on and make us into a top-10 team
“If you look at where Stoke were when he first came in – mid-table in the Championship – you can’t argue he’s done a fantastic job.”

Sky Bet swiftly installed interim Chelsea boss Rafa Benitez as the early favourite to succeed him, with Roberto Di Matteo and ex-QPR manager Mark Hughes other frontrunners.

Pulis first took the Potters job in 2002 and returned in 2006 after a stint at Plymouth Argyle, overseeing promotion to the top flight two years later.

Behind Arsene Wenger, he was the second-longest serving manager in the country following Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement and David Moyes’s subsequent move to Old Trafford from Everton.

According to Skysports