Houllier has accepted the decision with grace

Liverpool: Liverpool dismissed Gerard Houllier on Monday after six years as manager.

“After considerable thought and discussion the board decided to part company with the manager and Gerard has accepted it with typical good grace,” chief executive Rick Parry said.

After winning three trophies in 2001, Liverpool have had two disappointing seasons and finished fourth in the league in 2003-2004, well adrift of Arsenal and Manchester United.

The French manager said: “I arrived here six years ago as a Liverpool supporter and I leave as an even bigger supporter. I may have left Liverpool but Liverpool will not leave me. I will return to watch the team as a fan,” he told the club’s website.

Charlton Athletic manager Alan Curbishley and Valencia’s Rafa Benitez are the bookmakers’ favourites to take over at Anfield.

Houllier, 56, has been Liverpool manager since 1998. The former school teacher had previously coached the French national side and took Paris St Germain to the French title in 1986. He was appointed joint manager with Roy Evans in July 1998 before taking over sole command in November.

Houllier led Liverpool to the FA Cup, the League Cup and the Uefa Cup in 2001. In October 2001 he had emergency heart surgery and was sidelined for six months. The Frenchman and his team have struggled since his return and few of his big-money signings have made the grade.

Liverpool, four-time European champions, missed out on Champions League soccer for the season just finished and scraped into next season’s championship by finishing fourth.

Pressure on him has mounted in recent weeks as Liverpool considered a bid by Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to take a 30 per cent stake in the club.

The weight of Liverpool’s record 18 league titles, along with the European Cups secured in a golden era of the 1970s and 1980s, have made it extremely hard for Houllier to live up to expectations.

A well-respected coach, he paid the price for Liverpool’s failure to bridge a rapidly expanding gulf between the elite and the also-rans in the Premier League. In 2003-2004, they ended 15 points adrift of United and a whopping 30 points away from Arsenal.

Houllier had a dream season in 2000-01, winning the FA, League and Uefa Cups, and later adding the European Super Cup.

He underwent emergency heart in October 2001 and returned six months later to steer the club to a creditable second place in the league behind Double winners Arsenal.

Yet Liverpool never looked like title-winners and they have fallen further behind in the Premier League ever since, despite winning the League Cup in 2003.

Houllier has also been criticised over his transfer dealings.

Djimi Traore, Salif Diao, El-Hadji Diouf, Igor Biscan, Bruno Cheyrou and Milan Baros, along with French youngsters Anthony Le Tallec and Florent Sinama-Pongolle, have singularly failed to flourish in English football.