Dean Austin has left St Albans City.

The former Tottenham Hotspur and Watford defender returned to his former club in 2020, initially to set up an academy structure before taking on the title of director of football.

He has now chosen to bring that relationship to an end and push on with new objectives.

Speaking on LinkedIn, he said: "It comes with a heavy heart that I have decided to call time at St Albans City, my first club, and embark on my next challenge.

"This club gave me my big opportunity as a young player in football in 1988, having just been released from Watford, so 32 years on I returned with a lifetime of football and life experiences.

"I tried to bring a lifetime of ideas of how we could drive this non-league sleeping giant with a clear vision, and work relentlessly to try and take the next steps forward both on and off the field.

"I have taken the time to reflect and look at what we have achieved in a fairly short space of time but the conclusion was that we have laid the foundations for the club to really push itself onto the next level."

He cited the "values and the culture" as well as the "methodology and style in how we want to play" as examples of the strides forward as well as mentioning the academy and a "recruitment team consisting of two head scouts and a head of data analysis."

The club issued the following statement.

They said: "We can confirm the departure of Dean Austin as director of football.

"Over the past three seasons, Dean has architected and implemented the club’s football roadmap, including an academy structure and development pathway for young players.

"This has, in turn, produced young first-team talent, including Alex Lankshear (now at Blackpool) Huw Dawson, Ricardo Di Trolio, and George Morrall as well as laying the foundations and process for more young players to follow in the years to come.

"The club would like to thank Dean for all his hard work over this period and wish him every success in the future."

They went on to say that they would be looking to fil the gap left by his departure.