Millwall and QPR rivals sack manager after 12 games in charge

Millwall and Queens Park Rangers Championship rivals have sacked their manager Michael Beale after just 12 games in charge following back-to-back defeats in the league. Beale, 43, was brought into the Stadium of Light in December and was handed a two-and-a-half year deal after Sunderland sacked the popular Tony Mowbray.

However, Beale would go on to lose six games during his short stint and one of those defeats was a 3-0 home FA Cup defeat by their fiercest rivals Newcastle United. Sunderland now sit tenth in the league following the recent defeats to Huddersfield and Birmingham and the now former boss struggled to please the club's fans who met his appointment with much disapproval.

This recent dismissal also means that both Beale's last two jobs have ended in disaster with his previous role at Rangers ending in October after 43 matches and just ten months. It also means the club now has a new record for the shortest permanent manager in Sunderland's history with Beale's 12-match run being just one less than Paolo Di Canio's 13 in 2013.

While it is yet to be confirmed, Mike Dodds took on the interim head coach duties between the departure of Mowbray and arrival of Beale a fortnight later and is likely to resume those duties once again. Sunderland's next fixture is against Swansea on Saturday 24 February with the two sides set to kick-off at 3pm.

Sunderland's London rivals, Millwall and QPR, sit 21st and 22nd of the Championship respectively with the former losing their last four successive matches. QPR will take on Sunderland on Saturday 16 March while Millwall will face them on Saturday 20 April.