Louis van Gaal will leave Bayern Munich at the end of this season, the Bundesliga club have confirmed.
The Dutchman has come under fire for much of this season with the reigning German champions fifth in the table, 19 points behind leaders Borussia Dortmund.
Speculation grew about his future at the Allianz Arena following the defeat to Dortmund and the German Cup exit at the hands of FC Schalke, and it reached fever pitch this past weekend when Bayern slipped to defeat against Hannover.
That speculation has now been ended, with Bayern announcing Van Gaal, 59, has agreed to step down this summer despite having another 12 months remaining on his contract.
Executive chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said: “We are in a situation that concerns us all.
“We have suffered three defeats in a week which have jeopardised our targets for the season.
“(The board) had a chat with Louis van Gaal and have analysed our situation together with him, and despite the fact that in a few months we will go down separate paths, we are all in agreement that we have the will to work together to achieve our minimum objectives (third place in the Bundesliga).”
“Of course we know it's going to be very difficult but we will try anything. Whether we achieve it will be seen over the next nine Bundesliga games.”