Hasenhuttl suffered two 9-0 defeats during his time in charge of Southampton
Southampton have sacked manager Ralph Hasenhuttl following Sunday’s 4-1 home defeat by Newcastle.
Hasenhuttl, who was appointed in December 2018, leaves the club in the Premier League relegation zone with 12 points from 14 games.
Southampton last won at Bournemouth on October 19 in what is their only win in their last nine games.
“We now feel the time is right to make a change,” said a statement from the south coast club.
First-team manager Ruben Selles will take charge of Wednesday’s Carabao Cup third-round home game against League One side Sheffield Wednesday.
Scoring goals has been a particular problem for Hasenhuttl’s side and the 55-year-old Austrian lamented that his players missed chances against Newcastle.
He said afterwards he was not worried about the risk of losing his job, but the Saints board have decided to act ahead of the midweek EFL Cup game and Saturday’s trip to Liverpool. It is their last game before the Premier League’s World Cup break, which runs from November 20 to December 18.
Southampton added that Hasenhuttl had left “with a significant contribution to the club, overseeing some memorable results and also playing a key role in developing our club’s infrastructure, identity and squad”.
The Saints will “announce a permanent replacement in due course” and an early favorite for the job is Luton Town boss Nathan Jones.
Hasenhuttl has become the fifth Premier League manager to be sacked so far this season.
Scott Parker, Bruno Lage, Thomas Tuchel and Steven Gerrard were sacked by Bournemouth, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Chelsea and Aston Villa respectively, while Graham Potter left Brighton to take over as Chelsea boss.
Hasenhuttl ups and downs
Former RB Leipzig manager Hasenhuttl succeeded Mark Hughes as Saints boss with the club 18th in the Premier League and guided them to safety at the end of that season.
His first full season in charge saw them finish 11th in a campaign interrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic, before finishing 15th in 2020-21.
During that season, Southampton were top of the Premier League for the first time when they led on goal difference after eight games.
In January 2021, Hasenhuttl cut an emotional figure as he enjoyed a win against defending champions Liverpool.
However, in February of that year, Southampton were beaten 9-0 by Manchester United. It was the second defeat by that margin during his time at the club, having lost to Leicester by the same scoreline in October 2019.
After a stuttering start to last season, a winter revival saw them climb as high as ninth in February, but they lost nine and won just one of their last 12 games to drop to 15th.
The club responded by reorganizing Hasenhuttl’s coaching staff over the summer, with Kelvin Davis, Dave Watson and Craig Fleming leaving St Mary’s.
They also brought in several players including goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu, forward Sekou Mara, midfielder Joe Aribo and defenders Armel Bella-Kotchap and Duje Caleta-Car.
But that hasn’t managed to trigger an upturn in form.
Southampton have scored just 12 goals in their 14 Premier League games this season and were wasteful again against third-placed Newcastle in what turned out to be the manager’s last game.
“Newcastle have shown why they are where they are,” he said in his interview with BBC Sport after the game.
“They were clinical at the right times. They’ve shown us how to win games. I can’t say we’ve had a bad game, but it’s not enough to win games. That’s why we’re where we are.”