West Bromwich Albion and Nicolas Anelka have parted company, with the club sacking the player for gross misconduct.

The move came as a swift response to the player's own announcement on Twitter that he was terminating his contract.

The club said it regarded the player's behaviour in performing the quenelle - a form of Nazi salute - in a Premier League match last year together with his resignation on social media as gross misconduct.

In a statement, it said that Anelka had been unwilling to agree "to apologise to the club, its supporters, sponsors and the wider community for the impact and consequences of his gesture".

The club had asked for an apology as a condition of lifting the suspension it had imposed on the player after he was banned for five matches and fined £80,000 by an independent Football Association commission.

The commission found the player had breached two FA anti-racism rules in making the quenelle.

In his tweet, Anelka said he was resigning because he refused to accept the club's conditions and wanted to "keep my integrity".