Leeds United have sacked head coach Jesse Marsch after less than a year in charge.
The American was hired at the end of February 2022 following the dismissal of Marcelo Bielsa but suffered the same fate less than a year later.
Marsch steered Leeds to Premier League survival last season, after Bielsa was shown the door with the Whites only two points above the bottom three.
It was hardly an emphatic end to the season, however, with Leeds' 2-1 win over Brentford on the last day of the campaign ensuring their safety in 17th place.
Leeds lost key players Raphinha and Kalvin Phillips in pre-season, but those departures contributed to Marsch being able to invest heavily in the squad.
Including the January additions of Maximilian Wober, Georginio Rutter and Weston McKennie, who arrived on loan last week, the West Yorkshire club are reported to have spent £129million this season.
Many of those to arrive were known to Marsch, who had previously worked with three Red Bull franchises: RB Leipzig, Salzburg and New York Red Bulls.
Four of their signings this term came from those teams, highlighting how Marsch was entrusted to build a squad in his image.
But he leaves the club having not overseen a Premier League win since before the World Cup, with the 4-3 defeat of Bournemouth on November 5 their last victory.
Since then they have failed to win seven successive matches, though even that is not their worst winless run of the campaign – after beating Chelsea 3-0, they managed just two points from eight games.
The final straw came in Sunday's 1-0 defeat at Nottingham Forest, when a section of Leeds fans could be heard chanting for Marsch to leave.
The loss left them only out of the relegation zone on goal difference, though Everton – level with them on 18 points – have a game in hand.
Marsch's coaching staff have also been dismissed, with the process of appointing a new head coach already under way.
The Leeds hierarchy took action ahead of a Premier League double-header with bitter rivals Manchester United.
QPR 4-0 Leeds United: Shock loss for Farke's men seals Leicester's promotion
QPR thrashed Leeds United 4-0 in the Championship on Friday, ensuring Leicester City booked their promotion straight back to the Premier League.
Ilias Chair was the star for the Hoops as he scored the opener and assisted two more goals to ensure QPR will stay in the Championship for another season.
Lucas Andersen, Lyndon Dykes and Sam Field also got their names on the scoresheet in an emphatic win for Marti Cifuentes' side.
Leeds' heaviest defeat of the season was a huge blow in the race for an automatic promotion spot, with Ipswich Town just one point behind them in third place with two games in hand going into their away clash against Hull City on Saturday.
Brazil legend Marta to retire from international football
Brazil star Marta has announced she will retire from international football at the end of 2024.
The 38-year-old is the all-time highest scorer for Brazil, netting 116 goals in 175 matches for the national team.
She is also the top-scorer in the Women’s World Cup with 17 goals, finishing as a runner-up in 2007 when Brazil lost in the final to Germany.
The forward has won three Copa America Femenina titles and was part of the Brazil team that won silver medals at the 2004 and 2008 Olympics.
Marta could make her sixth appearance for Brazil at this year's Games if she is selected in the squad at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
"If I go to the Olympics, I will enjoy every moment, because, regardless of whether I go to the Olympics or not, this is my last year with the national team," Marta told CNN in an interview on Thursday.
"There will be no more Marta from 2025 in the national team as an athlete.
"I am very calm about this because I see with great optimism this development that we are having in relation to young athletes."
Al Hilal 3-1 Al Fateh: Neves on target as Saudi giants close in on title
Al Hilal moved 12 points clear of Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr at the top of the Saudi Pro League as Ruben Neves scored in a 3-1 win over Al Fateh on Friday.
Former Wolves star Neves slotted in from the penalty spot in the 74th minute, as Al Hilal completed a rapid comeback.
Having fallen behind to Lucas Zelarayan's 57th-minute opener, Al Hilal responded swiftly through Micheal before Salem Al Najdi fouled Mohammed Al Qahtani in the penalty area.
Ex-Barcelona winger Cristian Trello and Al Fateh coach Slaven Bilic were booked for their complaints, with Neves making no mistake, paving the way for Ali Al Bulayhi to seal victory in the 15th minute of an extended period of stoppage time.
Data Debrief
Al Hilal have now won 21 games on the spin in the league. They have scored 86 goals across their 28 matches this season, winning 26 in total.
They had 19 shots on Friday, accumulating 2.34 xG to Al Fateh's 0.25, with pass-master Neves creating three chances to go along with his goal.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
