Wayne Rooney has been sacked once more after winning just four of his first 23 Championship matches. The former Manchester United captain leaves the side rock bottom of the Championship after a run of five defeats in the last six games.

The final nail in the coffin was Sunday afternoon's 2-0 loss away to Oxford United, who climbed away from the relegation zone in the process. For Rooney, it is his second high-profile failure in a row after also struggling at Birmingham City.

Rooney was hired by Argyle in May with the task of overturning their fortunes after narrowly avoiding the drop following a return to the second division. The 39-year-old never really got going, though, and only won one of his first six league games in charge.

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A rotten streak dating back to mid-November has seen Rooney claim three points in one of the last 14 matches. He was already under pressure heading into Argyle's last fixture of the year after losing 4-0 to Frank Lampard's Coventry City on Boxing Day.

A statement from Plymouth read: "Plymouth Argyle can confirm that the club and Head Coach Wayne Rooney have mutually agreed to part ways with immediate effect.

"Departing the club with Rooney will be Assistant Head Coach Mike Phelan and first team coach Simon Ireland.

"First team coach Kevin Nancekivell and Club Captain Joe Edwards will lead the team for our Sky Bet Championship match against Bristol City on New Year’s Day. Daryl Flahavan will continue as Goalkeeping coach.

"We would like to thank Wayne and his team for all their efforts and wish them well for the future.

"The club will be making no further comment at this stage with updates on our new first team management staff in due course."