Why was Roberto Di Matteo sacked?

Albion reporter Steve Madeley lifts the lid on the circumstances behind the scenes that led to the sacking of Baggies boss Roberto Di Matteo.

It was early on Christmas Eve that the alarm bells began to sound.

I made a routine call to a players' agent about a possible transfer deal that was unlikely to happen but needed checking out. But the conversation soon took a very different course.

He spilled the beans on what he claimed was Roberto Di Matteo's dissatisfaction with Albion over his own contract, transfer policy and his overall opinion of the powers-that-be.

I was sworn to secrecy. Anyhow, this was just one man's word, so the 'heads up' went no further.

But the first doubts had been raised about the long-term future of the latest man charged with plotting the Baggies' Premier League future.

It did not end there. A few weeks later a colleague on the Express & Star sports desk listened with surprise as a respected coach from a rival club raised more doubts about Di Matteo's Hawthorns prospects.

And this time it was the Italian's standing among his team that was called into question.

The contact claimed to have spoken to friends at the Hawthorns and, in his words, Di Matteo's players simply "wouldn't have him." The sense of foreboding grew stronger.

If our contacts were on the money, the Hawthorns head coach was losing allies both above and below him, making his long-term prospects less than secure.

So when, a fortnight ago, a story that Di Matteo had quit found its way to my door, it was tough to dismiss it in spite of the Baggies' relatively strong league position.

It became clear quickly there had been no resignation, but several sources who dismissed that suggestion also confirmed all was not well.

They suggested the problems could yet be resolved. Clearly that was wishful thinking.

News of Di Matteo's sacking still came as a shock when the rumours that had surfaced late yesterday morning were confirmed at lunchtime.

But it was the timing of the announcement, not its content, that caught us on the hop.

For despite the considerable accomplishments of his 19-month reign, Di Matteo failed to silence the nagging doubts in the dressing room or the boardroom.

His appointment in the summer of 2009 drew a lukewarm reception all-round, not least among a playing staff still reeling from Premier League relegation and Tony Mowbray's defection to Celtic.

A flat pre-season trip to Slovenia saw players and staff struggle to adapt to the new regime, while Di Matteo's hands-off management style was tough for several players to accept.

Some players respected Di Matteo's analytical approach. Others resented what they perceived as a cold aloofness.

That dynamic remained an issue throughout his tenure although Eddie Newton, the Italian's effervescent right-hand man, did appear to make a positive impression on the playing staff.

It appeared that the reservations had been overcome as Di Matteo's charges made a fabulous start to the Championship season, remaining unbeaten for their first eight games to lay the foundations for a successful promotion challenge.

There were hiccups along the way, but each hurdle was overcome and promotion achieved thanks to Di Matteo's greatest virtue - his decisiveness.

The former Italy star never shied away from a difficult decision, whether it was his total change of formation and personnel after defeat to Nottingham Forest, the skilful handling of his fall-out with Robert Koren or this season's decision to axe Scott Carson.

Di Matteo always seemed able to stamp out a problem before it became a crisis - until the last three months.

His opening spell as a Premier League boss could hardly have gone better with impressive home victories, a courageous draw at Manchester United and an epic win at Arsenal that will remain his most enduring contribution to the Baggies annals.

But, from the moment their dismal slide down the table was triggered by the bizarre defeat on a miserable Monday in Blackpool, the Italian has carried the look of a passenger, powerless to alter the course of the juggernaut heading towards the drop zone.

The old doubts returned to the surface of the debate that ended yesterday with a ruthless decision from the Baggies board.

Commentators have been predictably quick to condemn chairman Jeremy Peace, who would have driven Saturday's discussion even though each of his fellow directors endorsed the difficult decision.

Yet few who have witnessed the horrible defensive displays of recent weeks would dispute that something had to change.

Action should have come in the January transfer market, where Peace and sporting director Dan Ashworth could not deliver the attacking targetman or the new centre-back that Di Matteo wanted.

If the campaign ends in relegation, the duo will rightly have questions to answer.

But the decision to jettison Di Matteo was not as illogical - and certainly not as shocking - as it might at first appear.

Neither players nor directors were confident that Di Matteo was the man to save the season. Faced with that growing doubt, the men at the top felt they simply had to act.

The decision will split opinion, but the ultimate verdict will be delivered on the field - and the Premier League table on May 22.