LONDON • Eddie Howe left his job as Bournemouth manager by mutual consent on Saturday, saying it was the right time for the club to have a change following their relegation from the Premier League.

The Cherries' five-year stint in the English top flight ended on the final day of the season last month after finishing third-bottom in the table with 34 points.

Howe, 42, departed after a discussion with Bournemouth officials, the club announced in a statement.

"Having spent a total of 25 years with the club as both a player and a manager, this decision - made together with the club - is one of the hardest I've ever had to make," he said.

"However, although the affection and love I have for this football club will always remain, we collectively feel that now is the right time for the club to go in a new direction.

"I have always ensured that every decision I have ever made as manager has been in the best interests of the club and its supporters, and this is no different."

He managed Bournemouth in more than 450 games across two spells at Dean Court spanning more than a decade.

The Englishman was initially appointed as caretaker manager in December 2008, and defied expectations to secure the club's safety in League Two despite starting the season with a 17-point deduction.

He then went on to win promotion to third-tier League One the following season. After a brief spell as Burnley manager, Howe returned, eventually guiding his boyhood club to the Premier League for the first time in 2015.

Bournemouth chief executive Neill Blake paid tribute to his accomplishments, insisting that their mutual parting of ways was one of his hardest decisions.

"Eddie Howe is synonymous with this football club, both as a player and a manager, and that will never change," he said. "He is quite simply a Bournemouth legend, having helped transform the identity and history of the club."

REUTERS