Wycombe sack Michael Duff after winless five-game start to League One season

Wycombe Wanderers have sacked head coach Michael Duff after a winless start to the League One season, making the former Burnley defender the first manager to lose his job in English football this campaign.

Duff paid the price for a run of three draws and two defeats across Wycombe’s opening five league fixtures, with Saturday’s 3-3 home draw against MK Dons proving to be his final game in charge. First-team coach Alex Morris has also departed alongside him.

In a statement, the club cited a broader slump in form as a key factor in the decision: “The club has made the decision in light of a disappointing run of results since the spring and believes the time is right to take a new direction.”

Wycombe pointed specifically to Duff’s record since the beginning of March, during which he oversaw just four wins from 12 games to close out the previous campaign. That late-season collapse, combined with the stuttering start to the new term, convinced the Chairboys board to act swiftly.

The 48-year-old Northern Irishman was appointed to replace Michael Dodds last year and leaves Adams Park having won 20, drawn 15, and lost 17 of his 52 matches in charge — a record that fell short of the promotion ambitions Wycombe had set for themselves heading into the season.

Duff previously managed Cheltenham Town and Swansea City before taking the Wycombe role, and enjoyed a playing career that included a spell at Burnley in the Premier League.

The club confirmed that an interim head coach would be named later on Monday. Wycombe’s next fixture is a League One trip to Leyton Orient on Saturday.