Chelsea would have had to pay an estimated £50m after sacking Graham Potter, but have reached an agreement which avoids a world-record fee.
The Blues opted to pull the trigger for the second time this season following their defeat to Aston Villa on Saturday night. Potter has struggled for results since arriving from Brighton on a five-year deal with their latest loss at Stamford Bridge proving to be the final straw.
Potter's dismissal could have cost the west London outfit a staggering £50m - as reported in February - although the Athletic has confirmed the Blues will pay a regular severance package that isn't determined by the remaining duration of his contract. That is on top of the £22m it took Todd Boehly to secure his exit from the Seagulls at the start of the season.
It cost Roman Abramovich just over £25m to get rid of Antonio Conte back in 2018 and Chelsea could've been paying far more than that, but have dodged forking out another mammoth fee.
The Englishman only won 12 of his 31 matches in charge, losing 11 of them. Chelsea have continued to slide down the table, currently finding themselves in 11th - 12 points off the top four. They've also been dumped out of both domestic cups with a European run not enough to save Potter.
He was subjected to chants of "you don't know what you're doing" by the home fans on Saturday night as the Blues were defeated once again. Chelsea have invested huge sums, both in the summer and January, but Potter has been unable to make his star-studded squad gel. Former Brighton defender Bruno Saltor has been appointed as interim head coach with a game to come against Liverpool in a matter of days.
Co-controlling owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali said: "On behalf of everyone at the club, we want to thank Graham sincerely for his contribution to Chelsea. We have the highest degree of respect for Graham as a coach and as a person. He has always conducted himself with professionalism and integrity and we are all disappointed in this outcome.
"Along with our incredible fans, we will all be getting behind Bruno and the team as we focus on the rest of the season. We have 10 Premier League games remaining and a Champions League quarter final ahead. We will put every effort and commitment into every one of those games so that we can end the season on a high."
In his final press conference Potter said: "There were a lot of good things in the game, a lot of attacking play, attacking entries, shots... if you look at the stats of the game, it's a positive performance. But because of the scoreline it's not. We're down in the game and we're really disappointed."
