SPL club Hearts sacked manager Graham Rix after just five months in the job and replaced him with interim manager Valdas Ivanauskas.
Hearts, second in the Scottish Premier League standings and in the semi-finals of the Scottish Cup, announced the decision on their website.
Chairman Roman Romanov, son of owner Vladimir, said: "We have been disappointed with the performances of the team. Results were not what they should have been."
Rix's role has been under question almost since the day he took the job, and was further undermined when it emerged there were issues over team selection.
It materialised that Vladimir Romanov picked the team for a game against Dundee United, which led to a player revolt.
But despite having a Tennent's Scottish Cup semi-final clash with Edinburgh rivals Hibernian to look forward to, second-place Hearts have seen Rangers close the gap on them in the SPL to six points.
Romanov took a swipe at the departing boss for some of his signings and conduct. He added: "We felt some of the signings made in January were not appropriate for Hearts.
"In addition, the events which occurred in February when Hearts played Dundee United, including the way in which some information reached the public domain, were disappointing to us.
"I'd like to thank Graham Rix for all his hard work at Hearts. He gave 100%, but ultimately it did not work out. Vladimir Romanov and the club's management felt that something had to be done quickly. We owed it to the fans."
