Manchester United have announced that Jose Mourinho has left the club.
The Portuguese's two-and-a-half year spell comes an end after the Red Devils made their worst ever start to a Premier League season.
Sunday's defeat to rivals Liverpool at Anfield left them 19 points adrift of the leaders and 11 behind the top four, as well as already conceding more goals than the whole of last season.
Sporting Life reaction:
The club made the decision to end the 55-year-old's tenure amid growing discontent over his playing style and the atmosphere behind the scenes at Old Trafford.
Michael Carrick is due to take training on Tuesday, but United plan to name a caretaker manager from outside the club by the end of the week to see out the season, with a permanent appointment to follow in the summer.
Mourinho has had a reputation for difficult third seasons throughout his career, and his United spell has proved no different, with the season marked by high-profile clashes with Paul Pogba and Anthony Martial alongside disappointing displays on the pitch.
Within an hour of United announcing Mourinho's departure from the club, Pogba posted a cryptic message on Instagram apparently alluding to the news before swiftly deleting it.
Mourinho has complained about the club's failure to sign a defender in the summer, but United feel they had given the Portuguese more than adequate backing in the transfer market.
In all they brought in 11 players - all of which were understood to be Mourinho's choices - at a cost of more than £400million during his tenure.
In return, United felt there was no progress either in terms of results, style of play, or the development of young players.
Mourinho joined United in May 2016 and guided them to success in the Community Shield, League Cup and Europa League in his first season.
But he was unable to deliver success in the Premier League, with United finishing sixth in 2017, and second - but 19 points adrift of runaway champions Manchester City - in 2018.
An official club statement read: "Manchester United announces that manager Jose Mourinho has left the club with immediate effect.
"The club would like to thank Jose for his work during his time at Manchester United and to wish him success in the future.
"A new caretaker manager will be appointed until the end of the current season, while the club conducts a thorough recruitment process for a new, full-time manager."
Mourinho took charge at United, succeeding Louis van Gaal, in the summer of 2016 and they won the Europa League and League Cup in their first season under the Portuguese.
The Red Devils then finished second in the Premier League last term, before making a troubled start to this season, winning only seven of 17 league games and being knocked out of the League Cup at home by Championship club Derby.
Jose Mourinho timeline as manager
- May 27, 2016 - Appointed as Manchester United manager, replacing Louis van Gaal.
- August 7, 2016 - Wins first silverware at United with a 2-1 victory over Premier League champions Leicester in the Community Shield at Wembley, new signing Zlatan Ibrahimovic scores the winner.
- September 11, 2016 - Defeat to old foe Pep Guardiola in the pair's first derby clash in England as Manchester City win 2-1 at Old Trafford.
- October 23, 2016 - A 4-0 thrashing at the hands of former club Chelsea on his return to Stamford Bridge.
- October 29, 2016 - Sent to the stands at half-time for protesting a decision against his side in a 0-0 home draw against Burnley.
- February 26, 2017 - Ibrahimovic scores twice as the Red Devils beat Southampton 3-2 to lift the EFL Cup - Mourinho becomes the first United manager to win silverware in his debut season at the club.
- May 21, 2017 - Ends Premier League season with home win against Crystal Palace as United finish sixth, 24 points behind champions Chelsea.
- May 24, 2017 - Guides United to the Europa League with a 2-0 victory over Ajax in Stockholm.
- August 8, 2017 - 2-1 defeat to former club Real Madrid in the Super Cup, new signing Romelu Lukaku scores the consolation.
- October 21, 2017 - A 13-match unbeaten run across all competitions to start the season ends with a 2-1 loss at newly-promoted Huddersfield.
- December 20, 2017 - A 2-1 quarter-final defeat at Sky Bet Championship side Bristol City ends United's hopes of retaining the Carabao Cup.
- January 26, 2018 - Signs a new contract to remain as United boss until 2020, with the option of a further year.
- March 13, 2018 - Sevilla knock United out of the Champions League at the round of 16 stage, winning 2-1 at Old Trafford after a goalless first leg in Spain.
- April 7, 2018 - Paul Pogba scores twice and Chris Smalling gets the winner as United come from two goals behind to win 3-2 at Manchester City and prevent Guardiola's side securing the Premier League title in the derby.
- May 12, 2018 - Rui Faria announces he will quit as Mourinho's assistant at the end of the season, the pair having worked together at various clubs since 2002.
- May 19, 2018 - FA Cup final defeat against Chelsea as Eden Hazard's penalty secures a 1-0 win for the Blues.
- August 27, 2018 - Defeat at Brighton in the second game of the season is followed up by a 3-0 loss at home to Tottenham - the worst home defeat of Mourinho's career.
- September 29, 2018 - A five-match unbeaten run in all competitions was abruptly ended with a 3-1 defeat to West Ham at the London Stadium.
- November 11, 2018 - Three straight wins, including an incredible 2-1 comeback victory at Juventus, looked to put Mourinho's side back in form but they fell to a 3-1 derby defeat at Manchester City to pile the pressure back on the Portugese manager.
- December 16, 2018 - A last-gasp 1-0 win at home to Young Boys saw United qualify for the Champions League knockout stages gave Mourinho a stay of execution, but a final matchday loss at Valencia was followed by a heavy 3-1 reverse to Liverpool at Anfield cranked up the pressure.
- December 18, 2018 - Just two days after their first defeat in nine league matches against their north-west rivals, Manchester United announced the Portuguese was sacked by the club on Tuesday morning.
Odds correct as of 1030 GMT on 18/12/18