Fleetwood Town chairman wants different direction after Joey Barton departure

Pilley took to Twitter to put on record his thanks to Barton and express the difficulty he had when coming to the decision.

On his Twitter account @capboy70, Pilley wrote: "I'd like to put on record my thanks to Joey Barton for job he's done during his time at @ftfc.

"I’m sure he will go on to have a hugely successful career.

"Today's decision was a tough one for me to make, but I felt now was the right time for the club to go in a different direction."

Barton's departure has come as a shock, due to the close relationship that the 38-year-old had with the Town chairman, as well as the improvements the Cod Army have made season by season until now.

Many eyebrows were raised when Pilley appointed Barton in his first managerial role but league positions improved each season with a play-off place last season, though Fleetwood do currently sit 10th in League One.

There has yet been official confirmation on who will take charge for the foreseeable future and whether more members of staff are leaving alongside Barton.