Former Manchester City chief executive Garry Cook reportedly resigned yesterday after learning he faced the sack.

Cook was alleged to have sent an offensive email to defender Nedum Onuoha's mother - a cancer sufferer - but claimed that the message had been sent by a third-party as a practical joke.

However, following an internal inquiry at the club, the Manchester City board found no other option but to relieve the former Nike man of his duties, according to The Mirror.

Prior to his resignation, club chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak was understood to have flown to Manchester to officially sack Cook upon his return from a family holiday in the United States.