Southampton has decided to sack manager Ralph Hasenhuttl after he spent close to four years in charge of the club from the south coast of England. The Saints have been in a poor slump of form in recent times and have lost six of their last nine matches in the Premier League. As a result, they find themselves in the precarious and dangerous relegation zone.

The news of Hasenhuttl’s sacking comes in the wake of Southampton’s 4-1 loss at the hands of Newcastle United on Sunday. That defeat has left them in the drop zone and second from bottom in the Premier League standings. Along with Hasenhuttl, first-team assistant coach Richard Kitzbichler has also departed the club.

A statement from Southampton FC read: “Hasenhuttl departs having made a significant contribution to the club, overseeing some memorable results and also playing a key role in the development of our club infrastructure, identity, and playing squad.

“However, it is an appropriate time to make a change. Everyone involved with the club would like to express their sincere thanks to Ralph for all of his efforts and the unwavering commitment he has shown throughout his time as manager.”

Having taken over the club in December 2018, Hasenhuttl holds the record of being the longest-serving manager in Southampton’s history. He has also become the fifth Premier League coach to be sacked this season joining an unwanted list including Scott Parker, Thomas Tuchel, Bruno Lage and Steven Gerrard.

The Saints are currently talking to Luton manager Nathan Jones and the Championship club also issued a statement on Monday that they’d permitted the Premier League club to talk to their manager. 

As talks continue, Southampton will be managed by first-team lead coach Rubén Sellés on an interim basis and he will be in the dugout for the Carabao Cup tie against Sheffield Wednesday on Wednesday.

While Hasenhuttl did impress many people with the brand of football that he employed at Southampton, the club also suffered two infamous 9-0 defeats in the space of 16 months during his tenure.

Leicester City was the first to inflict such a painful loss in October 2019 while Manchester United compounded their misery by the same scoreline in February 2021.

However, Hasenhuttl managed to preserve Saints’ Premier League status by guiding them to 16th in his first season in charge followed by an 11th-placed finish in 2019/20, with 15th-placed finishes in his following two campaigns.