Brentford "would have loved" Mark Warburton to stay

By Pascal Lemesre, Football League Editor | 17 February 2015

Brentford chairman Cliff Crown insists that the club "would have loved" Mark Warburton to stay on and be part of their new management model.

Brentford have insisted that they "would have loved" Mark Warburton to remain as head coach of the club after announcing his departure at the end of the season.

The Bees want to change their management model and implement a head coach-sporting director hierarchy that would see Warburton solely in charge of picking and coaching the team.

However, Warburton admitted that he and club had "key philosophical differences" and felt that it was right to leave in the summer.

Bees chairman Cliff Crown said in today's statement announcing Warburton's exit: "Lots of clubs are criticised for short-term thinking – we want to take a long-term view and put structures in place that both the board and the owner believe will be to the benefit of Brentford FC for years to come.

"The new structure is unusual in English football, although commonplace in other European countries and in other sports.

"We would have loved for Mark to stay, working within the new structure, but he feels that this is not right for him. We understand that completely and had to weigh up the benefits of the new structure against losing a fantastically successful manager before taking this decision."

Warburton led the club to automatic promotion from League One last year and has the Bees sitting just outside the playoffs in seventh place with 15 games of the 2014-15 season remaining.