Huddersfield Town announce the departure of Neil Warnock - with the veteran manager to leave after Wednesday night's Championship home game with Stoke City

Speculation over the future of the 74-year-old at Town has been rife since the end of last week.

Warnock took charge of Saturday's 2-0 home victory over former club Rotherham United and revealed afterwards that a press conference to clarify his position would be held on Monday lunch-time.

The departure of Warnock has now been confirmed.

Town chief executive officer Jake Edwards said: “I must start this statement by, on behalf of everyone at the football club, expressing my huge gratitude to Neil and his assistant, Ronnie Jepson, for the incredible job they have done at the club over the last six months.

“Keeping this club in the Sky Bet Championship, given the position the team was in when they arrived in February, was nothing short of amazing, and built upon their already lasting legacies at this club as a management team and, in Ronnie’s case, as a player too.

"They are both, undeniably, Huddersfield Town legends, and have cemented their positions in this club’s history.

"Our owner, Kevin Nagle, and I were so grateful when Neil and Ronnie agreed to stay at the club for the new season.

"All parties were clear that this was not a long-term appointment, but that it gave us important stability on the football side whilst the change of ownership was completed, and the new regime established itself at the club.

"At this point, we now feel we are ready to make a longer-term managerial appointment. I’ve had detailed discussions with Neil and, alongside Ronnie, Carl Serrant and Ian Bennett, he’s agreed to step aside to allow us to do this.

"Again, I cannot thank Neil and Ronnie enough for everything they have done for this club. I know they want to leave on a high with a result against Stoke City in midweek, and I’m sure they will get the send-off they deserve from the players and supporters."

Warnock – who took over in February - orchestrated a memorable 'Great Escape' against Championship relegation in the final third of the 2022-23 season at Town after signing a short-term deal.

The Yorkshireman, who registered seven wins from 15 matches in charge to guide Town to an 18th-placed finish, was given a guard of honour by players following their safety-clinching victory over old club Sheffield United in early May.

The former Blades, Rotherham United, Leeds United and Middlesbrough manager was convinced to stay on at the club following discussions with new owner Kevin Nagle following the end of his short term contract in 22-23.

Speaking at the end of last season, Warnock had originally ruled out a return to Huddersfield and suggested that full-time management was not for him.

But he had a change of heart and was officially re-appointed on a one-year deal in mid-June.

After a low-key start to the new season, some tensions came to the fore after Town's 4-0 home loss to Norwich City last month.

It prompted Nagle to tweet his dismay at the side's heavy defeat in the immediate aftermath of the game, saying: "That was a total drubbing by Norwich City. Unacceptable. Town supporters deserve better. I believe the squad is better than this!"

Warnock reacted to Nagle's tweet by stressing that he also shared disappointments of his own after claiming to have lost out on four transfer targets and stating that he had not been told that his wage bill for players included contract renewals for Danny Ward, Josh Koroma and Josh Ruffels.

Warnock said: “(There were) one or two comments made about the situation from Kevin and what have you that were brought to my attention..

"The team’s giving everything, I'm giving everything.

"It’s alright saying we’re disappointed... I was disappointed on Sunday (after the Norwich game) when I picked the papers up and four of my main targets in the transfer window in the summer, one had made a goal for a winning team – a smaller club than ours in the Championship – two had scored goals in the Championship, and the midfield player that was my number one target had got star (player) in another game.

"So when I see things like that, because we can't afford those players, it disappoints me as well, because I felt we could have been in getting four or five good players to the squad. I didn't realise at the time that my budget would include the players that were re-signed."