Claudio Ranieri sacked by Watford

To the shock of nobody, Watford have sacked a manager

Claudio Ranieri has been sacked as manager of Watford, The Athletic have confirmed. The Italian took charge of the Hornets back in October, replacing previous boss Xisco Muñoz, who was relieved of his duties just six games into the new season. Ranieri began his short-lived stay at Vicarage Road with a 5-0 hammering to Liverpool, before following that up with an impressive 5-2 victory away to Liverpool's Merseyside rivals, Everton. But the 70-year-old was unable to kick on - winning just once more in a 4-1 victory over Manchester United, which culminated in the sacking of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Once again however, Watford were unable to capitalise on the positive result and Ranieri's final game in charge was a heavy 3-0 defeat at home to relegation rivals Norwich City last week. Ranieri leaves the Hornets after just over three months at the club, taking charge of just 14 games - winning two and leaves the club in the midst of another relegation battle. At present, the Hornets are two points clear of Burnley in 17th, however the Clarets have two games in hand, meaning Watford could end up in the bottom three should results go against them. The former Premier League winner's departure means the club are now looking for their 18th permanent manager in the last 10 years with the likes of Chris Hughton, Frank Lampard and Sam Allardyce linked with the role. Or, if all else fails, they can always go back to Quique Sanchez Flores.