Valencia Football Club announced on Wednesday that they have sacked first team coach Gary Neville after less than half a season in charge.

Former Manchester United star, Neville replaced Nuno Espiritu Santo in December and his four months in charge saw him direct 28 games with a balance of 10 wins, 7 draws and 11 defeats.

However, that doesn' t tell the full story, because although Valencia reached the semi-finals of the Spanish Copa del Rey where they lost to a humiliating 7-0 in Barca' s Camp Nou Stadium, and the last 16 of the Europa League, where they were knocked out on away goals by Athletic Club Bilbao, their league form under Neville has been very poor with just 3 wins in 17 games.

That has seen Valencia drop from ninth to 12th in the BBVA Primera Liga table, just 6 points above the relegation zone and with a difficult run of games until the end of the season.

The club confirmed the news on their website, saying that "after careful consideration, the Club have decided to make a change with the best interests of the Valencia CF moving forward this season. We thank Gary for his work at Valencia and wish him the best in the future.

Pako Ayestaran, who was Assistant Coach at Valencia between 2001 to 2004 and assistant at Liverpool between 2004-2007 has been named as coach until the end of the season.