Struggling Stuttgart sack coach Babbel

Berlin: Bundesliga strugglers VfB Stuttgart sacked coach Markus Babbel on Sunday, a day after a 1-1 draw with VfL Bochum left them in 16th place, the club said.

Stuttgart, who have won only twice this season, have 12 points from 15 games."Markus Babbel is not the coach of VfB Stuttgart any more," the club said in a statement ahead of a news conference, adding that his assistants had also been sacked. "This decision came after several discussions with the coaching staff," the statement added. Stuttgart can still reach the Champions League knockout stage with a home win over Romania`s Unirea Urziceni on Wednesday. Babbel took over in November 2008, succeeding Armin Veh, and steered Stuttgart to a surprise third-place finish and a Champions League spot. This season, the rookie coach, who is still studying for his coaching licence, failed to replicate last year`s form with the team winning only two of their matches so far.The departure of striker Mario Gomez, who joined Bayern Munich for a Bundesliga record fee in the summer, hurt the team more than expected and Stuttgart have scored only 12 league goals so far. Fans booed and jeered the Stuttgart players when they arrived for the Bochum clash and an 89th-minute equaliser by the visitors prompted some in the stands to unfurl a banner reading: "You have just used up your credit". Police were drafted in to control several hundred fans who protested outside the stadium after the game. Bureau Report