Roy Evans left Liverpool last night after 30 years, leaving Gerard Houllier in sole charge. Evans's assistant, Doug Livermore, will also leave Anfield.
Earlier, Evans had met the Liverpool chairman, David Moores, who had been under intense pressure from supporters, the boardroom and the dressing-room to abandon his bold, if controversial, experiment in shared managerial duties.
Moores had indicated on Monday that he intended to give Evans and Houllier more time, but Tuesday's English League Cup defeat by Tottenham underlined the need for swift and decisive action.
It is believed that several Liverpool directors made known their feelings to Moores after the game, and that it was the manner of the performance, not merely the result, which sealed Evans's fate after almost five years as manager.
Evans declined to resign formally yesterday, though his words again had an air of resignation about them. "The speculation has been very difficult to live with," he said. "I have done this job with honesty and integrity, and seeing the club suffer does affect me badly."
His departure after more than 30 years of unbroken service as player, coach and manager signals the onset of a new era. With him has gone the last of the "Shankly Boys" who between them won 13 championships and four European Cups to make Liverpool the country's most successful club.
It is left to a Frenchman to recapture the former glories. Houllier's arrival alongside Evans in the summer was designed to offer innovation rather than revolution, but Liverpool have finally bowed to the latter.
He is the first foreigner to have full control at Anfield in the club's 106-year history. Moreover, he will install compatriot Patrice Bergues, a Liverpool coach, as his assistant.
Sadly, despite his loyal service, Evans's reign will not be remembered with great fondness, yielding as it did only one trophy, the 1995 League Cup after a 2-1 victory over Bolton Wanderers at Wembley.
After learning his trade alongside such legends as Bill Shankly, Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan and Kenny Dalglish, Evans was appointed Liverpool manager in January 1994 after the resignation of Graeme Souness.
Despite his lengthy apprenticeship, it was with reluctance that he accepted the top job and fulfilled Shankly's prophecy of the Sixties that the boy from Bootle would one day follow in his footsteps.
After the turbulence of Souness's tenure, Evans was asked to restore some of Liverpool's traditional values. This he did, but, despite investing almost £40 million on new players in less than five years, he was unable to close the gap between his club and the old enemy from up the East Lancs Road, Manchester United.
