Struggling Bundesliga side Schalke said yesterday that its board fired coach Felix Magath with immediate effect following a crisis meeting.

Magath, 57, who has won the title with both Wolfsburg and Bayern Munich, has been under a cloud for some time with Schalke languishing 10th in the league.

The Royal Blues booked their place in the Champions League quarter-finals last week with a 3-1 win over Valencia, however, and beat Eintracht Frankfurt 2-1 in the German league on Saturday.

“This decision is for the good of Schalke 04,” said club chairman Clemens Toennies.

The club added in a statement: “From our point of view there are very good reasons to justify this decision but we’re not going to say anything more because legal action is pending.”

After just 18 months in the job Schalke’s board lost confidence in Magath being the man to lead the Gelsenkirchen club to their first Bundesliga title since 1958. Magath also proved unpopular with both the fans and the players, who found his rigid regime hard to support.

But the main bone of contention was his transfer policy. He recruited 40 players since his arrival in 2009, many of whom were signed without consulting the club board, burdening the already indebted outfit with salaries amounting to €75 million. His sacking could however cost the club €12 million.