Premier League: David Moyes leaves West Ham

West Ham manager David Moyes has surprised the Hammers' fans as he decided to leave the club after just six months in charge. It is true that his contract ran out at the end of the season, but club co-owner David Gold said on Wednesday that he "hoped" that Moyes would remain in charge for another season. David Moyes replaced former manager Slaven Bilic in November, when the Hammers were in the relegation zone. He managed to lead the club to a 13th-place finish, but the fans have been quite unhappy with the team and even produced a pitch invasion in March during the 3-0 defeat at the hands of Burnley. Assistants Alan Irvine, Stuart Pearce and Billy McKinlay have also left the club with immediate effect. Joint-Chairman David 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." About the decision to let David Moyes go at the end of his contract, David Sullivan added: "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 10 days." Former Manchester City boss is in pole position for the West Ham job, he is 8/11 at PaddyPower to get the job, while Paulo Fonseca is 2/1 to become the next West Ham manager.