Premier League champions Leicester City have sacked Italian manager Claudio Ranieri, the club said in a statement on Friday morning.
Ranieri, whose side are currently a point and a place above the relegation zone, leaves less then a year after clinching a remarkable title triumph.
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Ranieri was appointed manager in July 2015, and led the Foxes to the greatest triumph in the club's 133-year history last season, as his side were crowned champions of England for the first time. His status as the most successful Leicester City manager of all time is without question.
A club statement put the regrettable decision down to poor domestic form in the 2016/17 season, saying: "The board reluctantly feels that a change of leadership, while admittedly painful, is necessary in the club's greatest interest."
![Change in fortunes: Claudio Ranieri.](/web/20170224125103im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/u/7/2/l/j/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.guk6ee.png/1487912567965.jpg)
Vice Chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha said: "This has been the most difficult decision we have had to make in nearly seven years ... but we are duty-bound to put the club's long-term interests above all sense of personal sentiment, no matter how strong that might be.
"It was never our expectation that the extraordinary feats of last season should be replicated this season. Indeed, survival in the Premier League was our first and only target at the start of the campaign.
"But we are now faced with a fight to reach that objective and feel a change is necessary to maximise the opportunity presented by the final 13 games," he added.
Leicester have a league fixture against Liverpool on Sunday, with assistant manager Craig Shakespeare and coach Mike Stowell taking charge of the squad until a new manager is appointed.
Reuters
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