CHELSEA STATEMENT: THE TEAM WILL BE LED BY INTERIM HEAD COACH BRUNO SALTOR

Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali, who jointly manage the club, said: "On behalf of everyone at the club, we want to thank Graham sincerely for his contribution to Chelsea. We have the highest degree of respect for Graham as a coach and as a person. He has always conducted himself with professionalism and integrity and we are all disappointed in this outcome.

"Along with our incredible fans, we will all be getting behind Bruno and the team as we focus on the rest of the season. We have 10 Premier League games remaining and a Champions League quarter final ahead. We will put every effort and commitment into every one of those games so that we can end the season on a high."