Salford sack Gary Bowyer as Gary Neville and co search for yet another boss

Salford City, the club owned by a cohort of former Manchester United players, are searching for yet another manager after sacking Gary Bowyer.

Bowyer was relieved of his duties after failing to qualify the Ammies for the League Two play-offs last season.

A statement on the club's website said: "Salford City Football Club announces the departure of First Team Manager Gary Bowyer from The Peninsula Stadium. A meeting was held earlier today and the club has made the decision to terminate Gary Bowyer's contract along with assistant manager Billy Barr.

"The club would like to thank Gary and Billy for their hard work over the last season, and we wish them all the best for their future roles within football. An announcement regarding the role of First Team Manager will be made in due course."

Bowyer's sacking comes a year after he signed a two-year contract with the club. It continues a pattern of Salford changing managers frequently since promotion into the EFL back in 2019.

Speaking after missing out on a place in the top-seven, Bowyer said: "It's disappointing 100 per cent, and the lads are absolutely gutted because they gave everything like they have done again today. They're a great set of lads to work with and we've got to come back stronger now."

Former Lincoln manager Michael Appleton is the bookies' favourite for the vacancy. Appleton left the Imps at the end of last season after three years in charge and has close links to the club's high-profile owners as he was a year behind them in the youth system at Old Trafford.

Salford have posted finishes of 11th, 8th and 10th in their three campaigns so far in the EFL and Gary Neville and co are now set to roll the dice yet again in pursuit of promotion into the third tier.

It means a fourth different man will be at the helm in less than two years. Graham Alexander, the man who delivered promotion from the National League, was sacked in October 2020 whilst his successor Richie Wellens lasted barely four months and was given his P45 just a week after helping win the EFL Trophy. Bowyer was then hired as interim boss from March to May 2021 before landing a two-year contract to take the role on permanently.

Neville has previously admitted he regrets letting Alexander go: "Last season, Graham Alexander should never have left this club. He should never have left, I should never have made that decision that I made. It goes against everything that I believe in and that's what owning a football club does to you, it takes you to that place where you do things that you don't believe you ever would do."

Neville, the most vocal of the club's owners, last month defended Salford's spending policy in the wake of figures revealing their parent company was losing an average of £91,000 per week.

He told Sky Sports: "We only spend the money that we have. It is a lot of money to lose but we've come up from step eight and had to spend millions and millions of pounds on this stadium. And we knew that was going to happen at the very beginning. We do one day long for sustainability at the club. But we're trying to build a fanbase in a city that's not had a Football League club ever. It's new to us."