Bees taking a major gamble

Bees owner Matthew Benham has made the shock decision to tear up the blueprint for success which has seen them climb from League One to the Championship promotion race under Warburton in place of a more European structure.

Warburton will leave at the end of the season having decided against taking the role of head coach, who would have less of a say on transfers, with Rayo Vallecano boss Paco Jemez favourite to replace him.

Crown said: "It's for the long-term benefit of the club. We want the club to be sustainable, to get into and remain in the Premier League and we believe we can achieve that in the medium term. We believe in the idea of having a head coach and a director of football, very much based on the European model."