Magath sacked at Fulham

Magath was sacked as Fulham manager on Thursday after a miserable eight-month spell in charge of the west London club.

The first German to manage a top side in England, he took charge at Craven Cottage in February. However, the 61-year-old was unable to keep Fulham in the English Premier League after reportedly losing the confidence of several members of the squad with his disciplinarian approach.

Magath, a former Bayern Munich, Wolfsburg and Schalke boss, was given the chance to make amends by leading Fulham to promotion in their first season outside the Premier League in 13 years.

Things started far from plan though. The winless Cottagers have endured a miserable time in the Championship, losing six of their seven matches and are bottom of the table.

Fate sealed by Forest defeat

The fatal blow to Magath's hopes of saving his job was delivered by Nottingham Forest on Wednesday as the second tier leaders recovered from 3-2 down with 13 minutes remaining to win 5-3 at the City Ground.

The dismal defeat, labelled a "catastrophe" by Magath, triggered calls from angry Fulham fans for him to be sacked and they got their wish less than 24 hours later.

Kit Symons, a former Fulham, Manchester City and Wales defender, will take over from Magath on a caretaker basis, starting with Saturday's match against Blackburn, while club owner Shahid Khan's search for a permanent coach gets underway.

"This is an unfortunate but necessary change," Khan said in a statement on Fulham's website. "I am doing what I feel is right and needed for Fulham Football Club, for today as well as tomorrow."

jh/rc (AFP)