Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino has departed the club by mutual consent after just one season at Stamford Bridge.
Pochettino, 52, assumed the role on July 1, signing a two-year contract with an option for an additional year.
The Argentine faced pressure after an underwhelming first half of the season, but a run of five consecutive wins to end the season secured a sixth-place finish in the Premier League.
Chelsea also finished as runners-up in the Carabao Cup and reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup.
“Thank you to the Chelsea ownership group and sporting directors for the opportunity,” Pochettino said.
“The club is now well positioned to keep moving forward in the Premier League and Europe in the years to come.”
Pochettino was Chelsea’s sixth permanent manager in five years, following the sacking of Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter, which led to Frank Lampard taking charge on a temporary basis at the end of the 2022-23 season.
“On behalf of everyone at Chelsea, we would like to express our gratitude to Mauricio for his service this season,” sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley said.
“He will be welcome back to Stamford Bridge any time and we wish him all the very best in his future coaching career.”
Coaches Jesus Perez, Miguel d’Agostino, Toni Jimenez and Sebastiano Pochettino have also left.
Amicable exit
Pochettino, whose tenure lasted just under 12 months, is believed to have left on very amicable terms, feeling it was the right decision after discussions with senior club officials.
He was initially seen as the one to transform Chelsea into serious title contenders again following their £747 million expenditure on transfers during the 2022-23 campaign.
The Argentine also had a significant budget to work with, spending over £400 million on players, including Cole Palmer, Nicolas Jackson, Moises Caicedo, and Christopher Nkunku.
Under Pochettino, Chelsea won 27 of their 51 fixtures, losing 14 and drawing 10.
The west London side spent most of the season in the bottom half of the table, but their form improved towards the end.
A defeat in extra time against a heavily depleted Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final led to widespread criticism of the former Tottenham and Paris St-Germain manager.
Pochettino regained some support following a 6-0 thrashing of Everton in April and a 5-0 victory against West Ham in May, although Chelsea suffered a 5-0 loss to Arsenal between those two results.