Chelsea have unexpectedly sacked Luiz Felipe Scolari.

The axe has come down on the second Premier League manager of the day, but unlike Portsmouth & Tony Adams, Scolari was not expected to be given the chop by Chelsea just yet.

At the helm at Stamford Bridge for just seven months when he replaced Avram Grant, Scolari has failed to live up to his reputation as a first class manager as Chelsea have slipped to fourth in the Premier League with just three wins from nine games in the league.

A Chelsea statement read:

The Chelsea board would like to place on record our gratitude for his time as manager. Felipe has brought many positives to the club since he joined and we all feel a sense of sadness that our relationship has ended so soon. Unfortunately the results and performances of the team appeared to be deteriorating at a key time in the season.

In order to maintain a challenge for the trophies we are still competing for we felt the only option was to make the change now. The search for a new manager has already started and we hope to have someone in place as soon as possible. While that continues assistant coach Ray Wilkins will take charge of the team on a temporary basis.

The timing of Scolari’s dismissal is a surprise to many as Chelsea have a difficult run of fixtures ahead, they will face Watford in the FA Cup on Saturday before travelling to Aston Villa the following week for a vital Premier League tie. Four days later Juventus travel to Stamford Bridge in the Champions League.

Perhaps Chelsea have a manager ready in waiting?

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