Paul Cook: Ipswich Town sack boss after nine months at League One club

Ipswich have sacked manager Paul Cook following Saturday's FA Cup second-round goalless draw at home to Barrow.

The former Accrington, Chesterfield, Portsmouth and Wigan boss, 54, only took over the League One side in March.

Ipswich chief executive Mark Ashton said: "Following discussions with the board, we have decided a change is needed for our long-term interests.

"I know how much Paul wanted to succeed at this club. At this moment, there is no one lined up to replace him."

Former English top flight side Ipswich will now be seeking their fourth manager since Mick McCarthy left in April 2018, following the short reign of Paul Hurst and two-and-a-half years of Paul Lambert.

Cook was appointed on 2 March, just a month before long-time Ipswich owner Marcus Evans sold the club to American investment fund ORG.

"We would like to thank Paul and his team for their efforts in what has been a difficult transition period for everyone," added Ashton. "There will be an extensive search to find the best replacement.

"I will communicate more to the media and our supporters on Monday."

Ipswich lie 11th in League One, 11 points and nine places behind Cook's previous club Wigan, who he left at the height of their financial troubles, after three years in charge.

Having taken over from Lambert with Ipswich in seventh, they finished ninth to miss out on the play-offs by five points.

Cook won only 13 of his 44 games at the helm - and, over the past month, they have won just three times in nine games in all competitions.

Since winning 4-1 at Wycombe at the start of November, they have had a packed 29 days.

They have picked up four points out of a possible 12 in the league, taken two games to get past League Two strugglers Oldham in the FA Cup first round prior to Saturday's stalemate with another League Two side Barrow and been taken to penalties twice in the EFL Trophy, bowing out of the competition to Arsenal Under-21s on Wednesday.

Cook's last words as Ipswich boss

In his final post-match press conference after being held at home by Mark Cooper's Barrow, Cook said: "The stadium in the first half wasn't a very nice environment, with supporters basically wanting to turn, which I get. The first-half performance was very indicative of that.

"The pitch is very dry and very bobbly all of a sudden and is not conducive for passing football, certainly passing sideways and backwards where our supporters are quite right to have a go.

"We're in a little period of time now where it's tough, and for our players we must show our character. For me as a manager, I've been in these situations. At all the clubs I've been at, Chesterfield, Portsmouth, Wigan, I've felt pain.

"I feel a little bit of pain now because the brutal truth is we're probably not as good as we might want to hope and think we are. The reality is we are a team that is genuinely trying to work hard to get better. We have deficiencies, they're there for all to see.

"Our fans are desperate to get behind us, they're desperate to support us. We've got to turn that little bit of trepidation into positivity."

Analysis - BBC Radio Suffolk sports editor Graeme McLoughlin

Just over a month ago, Paul Cook's new-look Ipswich thumped promotion chasing Wycombe 4-1 on the road.

Many felt that League One's best squad on paper had finally arrived, after what had been a poor start to the season, not helped by a woeful opening month in particular.

But since that awesome display at Adams Park, Town's performances have dipped again considerably.

In the last seven days, they have laboured to a win against bottom-of-the-table Crewe, been knocked out of the EFL Trophy by Arsenal Under-21s, and failed to score against League Two strugglers Barrow. All of this at Portman Road, a stadium the club is aiming to pack out later this month thanks to a ticket promotion.

Speaking to the media on Friday, Cook suggested some supporters were "drama queens" for their negativity, and he was critical of the atmosphere during the first half of the FA Cup fixture that followed.

These are actions that will not have gone unnoticed by Town's new owners, who have acted fast, ahead of two crucial league games on the road this week.