Tuesday 27 December 2016 21:03, UK
Bob Bradley's reign as Swansea manager is over after just 11 games, following a wretched run of form.
The American oversaw just two victories during his short tenure and a 4-1 thrashing at home to West Ham on Boxing Day sealed his fate.
Here, we take a look back at his short time in charge in his own words…
Bob Bradley's appointment was not a popular decision with the club's Supporters' Trust and critics pointed to his lack of top level club management experience. But the former USA, Egypt and Le Havre boss defended his credentials in his first press conference.
"I understand there are going to be sceptics. Honestly, I don't care," he said. "I love football, I love work and I believe in my ability. I am confident who I am, how I work and my ideas on football. I've coached some big players."
Swansea had not won a Premier League game since the opening day of the season, losing five of their next six, when Bradley replaced Francesco Guidolin in October. The incoming coach faced a tough task to turn things around with the club 17th in the table - but he set his sights high.
"I understand absolutely the importance of staying the Premier League," he said. "So, on one hand, that is a target. But would we be happy to say that is all we want to achieve? I hope not."
After giving Arsenal a rough time in a 3-2 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, Bradley earned his first point in the Premier League with a 0-0 draw at home to Watford - and took encouragement from his side's performance at the Liberty Stadium.
"If we continue to go in that direction the points will come," he said. "The work to become a good team is always difficult so we need to keep going.
"It was a fantastic atmosphere for my first game at the Liberty. We have a way to go to be where we want to be as a team but with that support we will get there."
Bradley may not have been in the Premier League long but he played a key role in the most thrilling match of the season so far. Swansea appeared down and out to Alan Pardew's equally under-pressure Crystal Palace but somehow found a way back to win in stoppage time 5-4 - Bradley's first Premier League win.
"That's a wild finish," said Bradley. "To take the first win like that and know how important it is for the players and supporters… extra special.
That's a wild finish!
"They kept going, and sometimes you need something like that to turn a season around. From the day I arrived I appreciate what kind of guys they are, love the club, and maybe we can use it in the most positive way possible."
A 5-0 defeat at Tottenham was an immediate wake-up call after the thrill of that win over Palace but Swansea bounced back in style with a 3-0 win over relegation rivals Sunderland. Bradley - who had described the game as a cup final before kick-off - was delighted.
"It was good work today," he said. "I think we are proud of it so we talk about relief, we talk about pride and we are trying to build on it."
Despite those two wins, Bradley revealed after defeat to West Brom that his Swansea side were under pressure every time they played.
"I think we can all agree that every game is massive for us right now," he said. "We understand that the start to the season we have had, and the league position we are in, make it extra important every time we step on to the field.
"If we can put a little bit of a run together at some point, then all of a sudden we would be out of the bottom three. The disappointment of West Brom was that we were not able to build on our win against Sunderland, but now we have to try to start a good run again."
When I came here I knew what I was getting into and I'm not backing down from it now.
The was no instant response from the West Brom loss, though, with Swansea going down 3-0 to Middlesbrough. Questioned about his future and his appetite for a relegation battle, Bradley was adamant about his position.
"I go in motivated every day and I've said many times I like the group of players, I love the club and now it's a challenge," he said. "When I came here I knew what I was getting into and I'm not backing down from it now."
A 4-1 thrashing at home to West Ham heaped pressure on Bradley but, to his credit, he remained committed to the battle. However, it would be his final address to the press before being relieved of his duties.
"At the moment, we are our own worst enemy," Bradley told Sky Sports after the West Ham loss. "When anything goes against us, we just seem to lose our way.
I am going to fight like crazy to try and turn this club around.
"My message from the start was that I understood the situation with the team and I was going to give everything I had every day. Noting has changed, and I am going to fight like crazy to try and turn this club around."
Bradley, the first American to manager in the Premier League, rejected the idea of him being a 'pioneer' - but he could not so easily shake off criticisms about some of the terminology he used during his tenure.
In his first press conference, he said: "I may slip up occasionally and call the pitch the field. Sorry. But I won't call football 'soccer'. Anyway, I'm pretty sure it was the English who came up with the word soccer - Association Football - so it is your fault."
After using the term "PK" when describing a penalty kick and referring to Swansea's away match with Middlesbrough as a "road game", Bradley said: "Ninety-five per cent of my football vocabulary fits without a problem, but there are other terms in football that come from different places.
"In France I once talked after a game about the importance of a clean sheet and they looked at me and said, 'What's a clean sheet?' This is football. Again, 95 per cent of my vocabulary fits without any question. It wouldn't make sense if I sounded like everybody else."
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