Club Brugge have sacked head coach Carl Hoefkens, despite the Belgian guiding them into the last 16 of the Champions League in his seven months in charge.
Brugge defied the odds by finishing above Bayer Leverkusen and Atletico Madrid to reach the knockout stage of the competition for the first time, where Benfica await over two legs.
However, the reigning Belgian champions have struggled domestically as they sit fourth in the league and were knocked out of the cup by Sint-Truidense last week.
Hoefkens has previously been assistant coach at Under-18, Under-21 and first-team level prior to taking over as head coach in May.
Brugge confirmed Hoefkens' exit in a statement on their official website on Tuesday.
Club CEO Vincent Mannaert said: "Carl's contribution and commitment to the club and as an assistant were greatly appreciated.
"His part in this season's successful Champions League campaign cannot be underestimated either.
"Our choices last summer did not deliver the desired level of play and result in the Belgian league and the Belgian cup. We are now working on the best possible succession."
Brugge are back in action on January 8 with a trip to Belgian First Division leaders Genk.
They welcome Benfica to Jan Breydel Stadium on February 15 for the first leg of their last-16 tie, before travelling to Portugal three weeks later.
Saudi league can be one of the world's best, claims Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo is confident the Saudi Pro League can become one of the world's best competitions in the years to come.
The Portugal captain joined Saudi Arabia's Al Nassr in the aftermath of the 2022 World Cup, with his second spell with Manchester United brought an abrupt end prior to the tournament in Qatar.
A free agent after the Selecao's quarter-final exit at the hands of Morocco, Ronaldo promptly moved to the Middle East and has quickly settled, scoring nine goals in eight Pro League appearances.
While widely considered a weaker league than those in Europe, Ronaldo believes those matches have prepared him for Portugal duty and expects the reputation of the Saudi top flight to improve in time.
"I feel really good," he said ahead of Portugal's Euro 2024 qualifier against Liechtenstein. "That's why I'm here. If I didn't think so, I wouldn't be.
"I'm in a very competitive league. They should look at the Saudi championship differently.
"Obviously, it's not like the Premier League, I'd be lying if I said it was, but it's competitive. I'm surprised by the strength. It has good teams, it is balanced, the Arab players are good, the foreigners give quality.
"Possibly it will be, in five to six years' time, if they continue this plan, the fourth or fifth most competitive league in the world."
Ronaldo's return to United had not ended well as he fell out with Erik ten Hag and fired shots at the club in a no-holds-barred interview while still contracted at Old Trafford.
"Sometimes you have to go through a few things to see who's on my side," he said on Wednesday. "At a difficult stage, you see who is on your side.
"I have no problem saying I've had a bad time in my career, but there's no time for regrets.
"Life goes on and, doing well or not, it was part of my growth. When we're at the top of the mountain, we often can't see what's down.
"Now I am more prepared and this learning was important, because I had never been through this as in the last few months. Now I'm a better man."
Kulusevski unperturbed by Conte comments and still happy to play under Tottenham coach
Dejan Kulusevski did not take offence to Antonio Conte's criticism of his Tottenham side and is still happy to play under the Spurs coach.
Conte labelled his players "selfish" after Tottenham drew 3-3 with Southampton, despite leading 3-1 with 15 minutes to go.
It came just two weeks after Tottenham, who are fourth in the Premier League, exited both the FA Cup and Champions League in the space of a week.
Conte is widely expected to be sacked, but Kulusevski, when asked if he was offended by the coach's comments, said: "No, because I know what I bring to the team every day.
"I know that I prepare myself to do as good as I can, and that's why I can always look myself in the mirror.
“Sometimes I know I don't play good enough, and I can take responsibility for that, but what he said is for him, that's his word.
“I respect him, and he helped me a lot during my career. So, he's still a very important man in our club and in my work.”
Spurs midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg suggested Conte needed to be "a little more precise" with his words, but Kulusevski believes the players can have few complaints after a poor run of form.
"He was very disappointed, as were us players, and we have to accept that," said the winger.
"We lost all the cups, we went out in Champions League also. So, I know that sometimes we have to be sad and angry, and that's how he took it.
"Somebody else will take another way; we just have to respect his words.”
As unlikely as it now seems, Kulusevski was then asked if he would still be happy to play under Conte and replied: "Yeah, absolutely.”
BREAKING NEWS: Mesut Ozil announces retirement at age of 34
Former Arsenal and Real Madrid midfielder Mesut Ozil has announced his retirement from football at the age of 34.
The former Germany international, who earned 92 caps for his country, also represented Schalke, Werder Bremen, Fenerbahce and Istanbul Basaksehir during his 17-year career.
Ozil was under contract with Turkish side Basaksehir until the end of the season, but he has called time on his playing career due to a number of injury issues.
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