Steve McClaren has been sacked by QPR following one win in their last 15 Championship matches.

The ex-England manager had overseen a dire run for the club, which continued with a 2-1 defeat to relegation-threatened Bolton Wanderers this weekend.

John Eustace comes in to manage the first team while the club begins its search for a new manager.

“Making a decision such as this is never easy, particularly when you are talking about someone as professional and dedicated as Steve,” said Rs chief executive Lee Hoos.

“We are grateful to him for all his efforts during his time with us.

“It is well documented that we are in a period of transition as we work hard to make the club financially stable.

“With that comes challenges, not least the cutting of the wage bill while aiming to remain competitive.

“As we look to the future, and taking recent results into account, we feel now is the right time to re-evaluate where we are.”

Director of Football Les Ferdinand added: “Steve has worked incredibly hard during his time with us but as we start to make plans for next year we feel this change is necessary now, rather than wait until the end of the season, or risk having to make such a decision early in the new campaign.”

McClaren leaves having won 16 of his 46 games in charge at Loftus Road.

His tenure coincided with the club working under financial restrictions due to Financial Fair Play breaches in the 2013/14 season – with the only summer signings being free transfers for Toni Leistner and Angel Rangel.

After a strong autumn the club have fallen down the table due to their poor recent run, currently sitting in 17th with 44 points before the final seven games.

Chairman Amit Bhatia said: “On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Steve for his hard work during his time with us, and wish him well for the future.

“I would also like to thank our fans for their patience and unwavering support during what has been a very difficult run of results, at a time when the club faces well-documented challenges.

“We must now work towards ending this season positively and building for the future.”