Sunday 17 September 2017 07:40, UK
Birmingham City have sacked manager Harry Redknapp after a sixth straight defeat on Saturday.
City announced Redknapp's departure shortly after a 3-1 home defeat to Preston left them second bottom of the Championship, with four points from eight games.
A statement read: "Unfortunately due to the poor start to the campaign, we are left with no choice but to terminate the contract of the manager with immediate effect.
"We thank him for all his efforts and wish him good luck for the future."
Redknapp kept Birmingham up after succeeding Gianfranco Zola in April and oversaw a major overhaul of the playing squad during the transfer window.
Fourteen players came in, but the Blues have won just once in the league and are out of the Carabao Cup.
Lee Carsley, the club's head professional development coach, will take charge on a caretaker basis.
Speaking to Sky Sports in the immediate aftermath of the Preston game, Redknapp cited injuries and a long-standing "losing mentality" as mitigating factors in City's poor run of results.
"It just seems when things start to go wrong, we just seemed to go under today," he said. "We got another hamstring after two minutes today - that's four hamstrings.
"Che Adams - we turned down £10m for him on transfer Deadline Day. He's not started a game, hasn't played. Isaac Vassell hasn't played. We bought Jota from Brentford - £6m - he's done a hamstring at Leeds. Today Jason Lowe does a hamstring after one or two minutes.
"That's not excuses, it's just the facts. It's made it difficult to get a settled team that you can think 'this is my team, go and play the next five or six games and get a bit of an understanding together'.
"It's been difficult, it's been a rushed job but we have to do better. It's not good enough."
