Birmingham City sack manager Lee Clark

Birmingham City have announced the departure of Lee Clark as manager.

Clark and his assistant Steve Watson have been removed from their posts after a little over two years at the club.

"The search for a successor has already begun and the board will look to make an appointment in the very near future," read a statement on the club website.

"In the meantime, first-team coach Richard Beale and chief scout Malcolm Crosby have been placed in caretaker charge."

After just managing to stay up in miraculous fashion on the final day of last season, Birmingham have started this season slowly again and currently lie just outside the bottom three.

The final straw for Clark was Saturday's 1-0 defeat at home to Bolton Wanderers.

The Blues' record at home in the past year has been dreadful, with just one league win in 24 games at St Andrew's - a run that stretches back to October 1, 2013.

Burton Albion's Gary Rowett and former Bolton Wanderers boss Owen Coyle are the early favourites to replace Clark.