Fulham have named former Bayern Munich coach Felix Magath as manager after sacking Rene Meulensteen.
A club statement made no mention of Meulensteen, who replaced Martin Jol in December and won three league games. “They have hit the panic button on emotion and fear – but hey ho, that’s football,” Meulensteen told BBC Sport.
Fulham chairman Shahid Khan said: “With 12 matches remaining, we certainly can no longer post empty results. Action was required.”
Germany-born Magath, 60, signed an 18-month contract at Fulham, who are bottom of the Premier League. He has won the Bundesliga three times as a manager, most recently with Wolfsburg in 2009.
Meulensteen coached at Old Trafford for 12 years under former Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson and had 16 days in charge of Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala last August.
He guided Fulham to a 2-2 draw at Old Trafford on Sunday but the Cottagers were beaten by a last-minute penalty as they lost 3-2 to Liverpool in midweek.
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 live, Meulensteen said: “I knew the owners were freaking out a little bit that there was the possibility of the club going down.
“The way forward that we have discussed with the club was about longevity and in this case it is clearly an act of fear.
“I have not had a lot of time and people who came to the Manchester United and Liverpool games could see what I was trying to put in place.
“I couldn’t care less what they put in the statement, to be honest.”
Meulensteen won four of his 17 games in charge at Craven Cottage, losing 10 times. On transfer deadline day he signed five players, including Greece international striker Konstantinos Mitroglou from Olympiakos for about £11m and Tottenham midfielder Lewis Holtby on loan.
German Magath has been out of work since leaving Wolfsburg in 2012 but won the double twice with Bayern, adding a third Bundesliga title with Wolfsburg in 2009.
Khan added: “Felix is an accomplished manager with multiple honours in the Bundesliga and a hunger to replicate his success with Fulham in the Premier League.
“I’m especially impressed with the reputation Felix has for coming into clubs at difficult times, often late in the season, and lifting them to their potential and beyond.
“Felix knows that is precisely the task awaiting him at Fulham, and he made it abundantly clear that he wants and is ready for the opportunity.
“Our club has shown promise in recent matches, but the fact is we have not won a league match since 1 January. Given our form, we can no longer merely hope that our fortunes will finally turn.”
Fulham, whose next game is at 17th-placed West Brom on Saturday 22 February, said that an announcement on their backroom staff will be made in the near future.