CHRIS Hughton has spoken about the moment he was sacked as Albion manager.

The former Tottenham player saw chairman Tony Bloom at the training ground on the day after the final league match of the season and thought nothing of it.

But just hours later he was out of a job.

The 60-year-old told The Times: “The biggest disappointment is that I never saw it coming.

“As a manager you feel when things are not right or relationships have broken down, but there was never anything there for me to feel what was coming.

“I thought the chairman was in there for club stuff or, if he was there to see me, it was about pre-season, so it was a big shock.

“For a moment I couldn’t say anything.

“I absolutely wasn’t expecting it, I was stunned, there was a silence.”

Hughton took charge in December 2014 when Albion were in 21st position in England’s second tier.

In his third season at the helm he took them to the Premier League and last season survived a relegation scrap whilst leading the team them to an FA Cup semi-final.

But, despite spending four-and-a-half years at the club, Hughton said he was “not bitter” about his departure and is now eyeing up a return to the top flight.

He told The Times: “I’m not saying no to a Championship appointment. I’d love to go in as a Premier League manager but the reality is that managers like myself have to take a team from the Championship to become Premier League managers.”