Queens Park Rangers have parted company with Luigi De Canio, the club's manager, by mutual consent.

The Italian took charge at Loftus Road at the end of October with the club languishing in the bottom three in the Coca-Cola Championship, eventually leading them to 14th in the final table.

A club statement read: "The club would like to place on the record their thanks to Luigi for his contribution to QPR and wish him all the best for a successful future. Mr De Canio also wanted to express his gratitude for the opportunity to manage Queens Park Rangers and also for the fantastic experience he had during his time in England."

Despite winning their opening fixture under De Canio's guidance, QPR went on a seven-match run without another victory. Renault Formula One boss Flavio Briatore and Bernie Ecclestone have been bankrolling the revolution in west London as co-owners, with a further 20 per cent stake in the club bought by the family of Lakshmi Mittal, the world's fifth richest man.

Around £5million was spent in the January transfer market, with Akos Buzsaky, Damien Delaney, Gavin Mahon, Fitz Hall, Rowan Vine and Patrick Agyemang were among those to join the club. However, speculation mounted only last week that Zinedine Zidane, the former France World Cup winner, had been lined up as a possible replacement for De Canio.

"An announcement on a successor will be made in due course," added the statement.

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