FORMER Rangers star Thomas Buffel has been sacked from his first job as a manager.
The big decision comes with his team bottom of their league.
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The ex-Belgium midfielder, 43, won the SPL title and Scottish League Cup with Rangers in 2005.
He went on to spend nine seasons with KRC Genk, winning a league title and Belgian Cup.
The Pro League club put him in charge of Jong Genk, their reserve side, two summers ago.
The team competes in Belgium’s second tier.
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However they have slumped to the foot of the table, and Friday’s 1-0 loss at RWDM sealed Buffel’s fate.
Assistant coach Peter Reynders has also lost his job.
Genk announced: “We were forced into a clear decision in the best interests of the team. It was a choice we made with reason, but not with our hearts.
“Both Thomas and Peter have given 100 per cent for us both on and off the field in the past decades.
“The entire club expressly wishes to thank Buffel and Reynders for their dedication and efforts.
“Jong Genk’s aim remains the same, to survive in the second division. The board is working to find a solution for the rest of the season.”
Buffel scored 13 goals in 76 Rangers appearances before leaving for Cercle Brugge in 2008.
Capped 36 times, he moved to Ibrox from Dutch giants Feyenoord in January 2005 in a deal worth just over £2million.
After helping the Gers to a league and cup double in his first half-season season, he was then part of the side that made history by reaching the last 16 of the Champions League the following campaign.
Buffel was close to a move to Germany in January 2007 but couldn’t agree terms with Hannover and stayed put.
That was despite Light Blues boss Walter Smith saying he was free to leave.
Just a matter of weeks later, a knee injury ended Buffel’s season.
He would go on to make just five appearances during the 2007/08 season before finally sealing an exit that summer when he joined Cercle Brugge.
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