Steve McClaren was sacked as Newcastle United manager on Friday with the club facing relegation from the Premier League with 10 matches of the season left.

"After the defeat to Bournemouth on Saturday the Club has spent some time considering its position and today concluded that Steve McClaren's employment with the Club will end with immediate effect," Newcastle said in a statement.

McClaren, 54, a former England manager, signed a three-year deal to become Newcastle boss last June and was also appointed to the club's board of directors.

But Newcastle have never recovered from a poor start to the season in which they failed to win any of their opening eight league matches.

They are 19th in the 20-team standings, facing a return to the second tier for the first time since 2010.

(For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at @AO_Sports and on Facebook at AhramOnlineSports.)