Defeat at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur and the Joey Barton debacle appear to be the straw that broke the camels back for the Manchester City board.

With the club failing to score at home since new years day and a constant stream of rumours coming from the dressing room, there has been a lot of talk about Pearce’s future.

Manchester City confirmed Pearce’s immediate departure on the clubs website. Pearce has been at the club for six years, he joined to learn his trade from Kevin Keegan, then Pearce stepped in to the breach when Keegan left in 2005.

There will be a number of managers with Premiership pedigree looking to fill the vacancy, Chris Coleman, Sam Allardyce, Glenn Roeder and Paul Jewell are all currently seeking employment. The favourite has to be Jewell, having demonstrated his ability to work on a shoe string at a small club, he would relish the opportunity to work at a bigger club where he could build a team for the future.