Southampton, April 7 (IANS) Southampton FC have sacked men’s first team manager Ivan Juric, a day after the Saints were sentenced to the earliest relegation, with seven games still left, in the Premier League after the 1-3 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur.
Juric was named as Russell Martin’s replacement four days before Christmas, on an 18-month deal and his reign lasted just 108 days in charge, losing 12 out of his 14 top-flight games
“Ivan came to Southampton at a tough time and was tasked with trying to improve a squad in a difficult situation. Unfortunately, we haven’t seen performances progress the way we had hoped, but we would like to thank Ivan and his staff for their honesty and hard work as they fought against the odds to try and keep us up.
“With relegation to the Championship now confirmed, we believe it is important to give fans, players and staff some clarity on the future as we head into a very important summer,” read the statement by Southampton.
According to a report by Sky Sports, the Championship-bound club had a relegation clause in Juric’s contract which led to his premature departure.
The club have announced Simon Rusk, who was previously announced as the interim manager after the club had sacked Martin, to take charge of the club in the last phase of the season alongside former Liverpool midfielder Adam Lallana.
“The process of finding a new manager to lead us as we look to secure an immediate return to the Premier League has now begun and is being led by Group Technical Director Johannes Spors.
“In the meantime, Simon Rusk has agreed to take charge of the team as Interim Manager for the remaining seven fixtures of this season and will be assisted by Adam Lallana,” the statement further read.
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