Wolfsburg coach Niko Kovac has been sacked following the side's plummeting form, the Bundesliga club announced on Sunday, with media reports saying ex-Southampton and RB Leipzig boss Ralph Hasenhüttl is set to take over.
The Wolves lost 3-1 at home to Augsburg on Saturday, their 11th league game without a win and third defeat in a row. They were unlucky to have Kevin Wimmer harshly sent off after he had given them the lead but then completely fell apart.
The Volkswagen-backed club, champions in 2009, have slipped to 14th spot with eight games remaining and are only six points above the relegation play-off spot.
Wolfsburg also went out in the last 16 of the German Cup.
"After the defeat against Augsburg, we came to the decision to end our collaboration after an internal review of the match and our overall situation," managing director Marcel Schäfer said in a statement.
"We regret the development and believe it is now necessary to give the team new impetus in order to stabilize the situation."
Kovac's brother Robert, his long-time assistant, has also moved on.
Former Croatia, Eintracht Frankfurt, Bayern Munich and Monaco coach Kovac was appointed at Wolfsburg in 2022. They missed out on a Europa League spot last season and though this campaign started well, the Wolves have since gone 20 league games with just two wins.
"Of course, as head coach, I am particularly disappointed that we have not managed to turn things around despite promising beginnings," the 52-year-old German-born Croatian said.
"We wish the team, the entire club and its fans the very best for the rest of the season and for the future."
Austrian Hasenhüttl, who also managed Ingolstadt in the Bundesliga, could take training as early as Tuesday according to Germany's Bild and Kicker.
Former Mainz coach Bo Svensson and Matthias Jaissle of Al-Ahli were also said to have been in the running.
Despite Wolfsburg's next match not coming until March 30 because of the international break, it appears the board have decided to quickly recruit 56-year-old Hasenhüttl.
