Freddy Shepherd: "I think the signs were there and I’m not surprised at all. No contract, no transfer budget and no assistant after Calderwood left, I’m surprised that anybody is surprised.
"Remember nice guys don’t win. I’ll not be a hypocrite, if I was Mike Ashley I’d have been worried as well, I like Chris Hughton but it was heading one way in my opinion, quite a few people wouldn’t agree with me but I think Ashley’s done the right thing.
"Chris [Hughton] was a nice guy, a lovely guy, in fact I’ve never met anyone as nice or as decent as him but I think the problem was it was heading in one direction and the signs were there.
"Why is anybody surprised when they wouldn’t give him a contract, everybody knows he was one of the poorest paid managers in the Premier League.
"He was too nicer guy and that was his downfall."