Fulham's manager Sanchez sacked

LONDON, Dec. 21 (Xinhua) -- Struggling Fulham, who had won just twice in the league all season, sacked manager Lawrie Sanchez on Friday to ensure its berth in the English Premier League.

"Following a run of disappointing results the club is languishing in the relegation zone of the Premier League table, and losing its Premiership status is a proposition that simply cannot be contemplated at this stage in the club's on-going development," Fulham said in a statement.

"The club is confident that it will find the right replacement to increase its chances of remaining in the Premiership, which is of vital importance.

"The club would like to thank Lawrie for helping the club through a difficult period at the end of last season, and thank him for his service over the last eight months."

Ray Lewington and Billy McKinlay will be in charge of the team whilst a search for a permanent replacement for the former Northern Ireland boss takes place.

Sanchez was appointed on a caretaker basis after the departure of Chris Coleman last season and given the job full-time in May.

Coleman was removed for similar reasons last April but the club were impressed as Sanchez steered the club to safety.

Fulham are currently third from bottom of the Premier League with just 13 points from 17 games.