Sebastian Hoeness given the boot by Hoffenheim

Five days after his 40th birthday, Hoeness was shown the door as Hoffenheim finished ninth in Germany's top flight, falling six points short of a place in the European Conference League. The writing was on the wall for the nephew of former Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness when Hoffenheim rounded off their league campaign with a 5-1 thrashing by Borussia Moenchengladbach last Saturday.

Hoffemheim were fourth, in the Champions League places, in mid March, but have dropped down the table since, losing their last three games and conceded 13 goals in the process. "We have always clearly expressed our appreciation of Sebastian Hoeness in the past few months. That's why the decision wasn't easy for us," said Hoffenheim sports director Alexander Rosen. "We have to admit that the results and events of the past two months have overshadowed many of the many positive aspects."

Hoeness, who joined Hoffenheim after coaching Bayern's reserves, is the fourth coach to part company with a Bundesliga club in as many days. Both Adi Huetter and Markus Weinzierl announced Saturday they were leaving Borussia Moenchengaldbach and Augsburg respectively. Florian Kohfeldt was then sacked by Wolfsburg on Sunday, the day after his team fought back to earn a 2-2 draw at home to Bayern.