Darmstadt sack head coach Meier

Head coach Norbert Meier has been relived from all his duties with immediate effect, German football club Darmstadt have confirmed in an statement via the club's official homepage.

After suffering their fifth straight loss and dropping to the Bundesliga drop zone, Darmstadt reacted and dismissed head coach Norbert Meier and sporting director Holger Fach on Monday, reports Xinhua.

"After careful analysis of yesterday's game, we reached the conclusion that the club needs a fresh impetus to reverse the current negative cycle, and that is why this decision has been made," Darmstadt's president Ruediger Fritsch said.

"We thank Norbert Meier and Holger Fach for all their hard work."

The 58-year-old coach joined Darmstadt from second division side Arminia Bielefeld in the summer 2016. Under his command the "Lilien" reaped two wins, two draw and nine losses in the Bundesliga. They were also eliminated from the German Cup by fourth division team Astoria Walldorf.

Darmstadt are 16th place on the Bundesliga standings, which is a relegation play-off spot. They will encounter newly promoted Freiburg in the next match on Saturday.

--IANS

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