Norwich City sack manager Alex Neil

Alex Neil guided Norwich to promotion to the Premier League in his first season at the club

Norwich have sacked manager Alex Neil, with Alan Irvine taking charge of Saturday's game against Blackburn.

Neil won immediate promotion to the Premier League after joining the Canaries in January 2015, but failed to stop the club being relegated back to the Sky Bet Championship the following season.

Norwich are without a win in their last five games and, nine points off the play-off places with 10 games to go in the current campaign, the club's hierarchy have voted to remove Neil and put former West Brom manager Irvine in temporary charge.

Former Birmingham City manager Gary Rowett and ex-Bristol City boss Steve Cotterill are interested in replacing Neil at Carrow Road, according to Sky sources, with Alan Pardew also understood to be interested in a return to management having been sacked by Crystal Palace earlier this season.

A Norwich statement read: "The board has taken the tough but unanimous decision, believing it is in the best interests of the club for a new manager to be in place through a crucial summer transfer window and into next season.

"The directors would like to place on record their sincere gratitude to Alex for all of his hard work and for the fantastic achievement of guiding us to the Premier League in 2015, via a memorable play-off final success against Middlesbrough at Wembley.

"Through tough seasons last year in the Premier League and this year in the Championship, Alex has always given his all to the Club and we wish him every success in his future career."