Manuel Pellegrini, his pallid complexion even greyer than ever, walked into his post-match press conference as a dead man walking.

He knew David Sullivan and the equally furious David Gold already had at least one finger each on the trigger, but the Chilean barely flinched as he went through the motions of defending another humiliating display.​

“That’s a question I cannot answer,” he said when asked if he would still be in charge against Bournemouth. ​As it turned out, he would get his ­answer just five minutes later, at 9pm.​

Sullivan and Gold, the club’s joint chairmen, were both on hand to fire the 66-year-old immediately after he walked into the boardroom. ​

His West Ham adventure, having spent more than £100 million over the summer, will be remembered as a disaster. Pellegrini’s expensively assembled side started the season in fine form, but a run of two wins from 14 matches – and four straight home ­defeats – saw them tumble from fourth to 17th in the space of three months.​

Sullivan said it was a “great disappointment that we’ve had to make this decision”. He added: “Manuel is a gentleman and it has been a real pleasure to work with someone of his calibre. However, it has become clear that a change is required to get the club back on track in line with our ambitions this season.”​