Thursday 23 May 2013 13:06, UK
Mark Hughes has emerged as Sky Bet's new favourite to be the next Stoke manager following a run of bets on Wednesday.
Fellow Welshman Pulis guided Stoke into the Premier League during his second spell at the helm and later led them to an FA Cup final and into Europe. But the Potters were dragged into relegation trouble last season and Pulis drew criticism from some sections of the Britannia Stadium support over his side's style of play. A brief club statement read: "Stoke City and Tony Pulis confirm that they have mutually agreed that Tony will leave the Club with immediate effect." Earlier, Stoke winger Matt Etherington had warned fans to be careful what they wish for as news of the manager's imminent departure began to circulate. "I've spoken to a few of the other boys and they're shocked as well, it's hit us," he told Talksport. "Fans were grumbling saying they wanted him out or wanted a change but it looks like they have got their wish. "You have to be careful what you wish for in football sometimes. You look at Charlton under Alan Curbishley and look where they are now. "Hopefully it won't go that way for us, hopefully we'll get someone in who will push us on and make us into a top-10 team. "If you look at where Stoke were when he first came in - mid-table in the Championship - you can't argue he's done a fantastic job." Pulis first took the Potters job in 2002 and returned in 2006 after a stint at Plymouth Argyle, overseeing promotion to the top flight two years later. Behind Arsene Wenger, he was the second-longest serving manager in the country following Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement and David Moyes's subsequent move to Old Trafford from Everton. Now Etherington hopes Stoke bring in the correct candidate to replace Pulis. "We will wait and see who the club decide to bring in," he said. "The chairman is a very sensible man, very level-headed and knows his football and he will definitely bring in the right person for Stoke."
