Leeds United have sacked their head coach, Thomas Christiansen, following a dismal seven-match winless run, with the Championship club yet to win in 2018.

Leeds were hammered 4-1 at home to Cardiff City on Saturday, two weeks after losing to Millwall at Elland Road and almost a month on from their FA Cup exit at the hands of Newport County. The club are 10th in the league, with their last victory in all competitions on Boxing Day, a 2-1 win at Burton Albion.

The 44-year-old Dane was appointed on a two-year contract in June but after a promising start in which Leeds were top of the table in September, they have since fallen away from the top-six reckoning, losing five of their last seven matches. Christiansen’s assistants, Julio Bañuelos and Paul Butler, have also left Leeds, along with the fitness coach, Ivan Torres.

“Chairman Andrea Radrizzani and the board of directors would like to thank Thomas and his staff for their hard work over the past eight months,” read a club statement on Sunday evening.

The dismissal of the former APOEL Nicosia manager means Leeds are looking for their seventh manager since 2014 and 10th since Simon Grayson departed after a four-year spell in January 2012. Leeds are expected to make a swift appointment and Grayson, sacked by Sunderland in October, is an early favourite alongside the Barnsley manager, Paul Heckingbottom. Jaap Stam, Reading’s manager, was shortlisted for the job last summer and is also likely to be of interest.

Meanwhile Steve McClaren, the former England and Middlesbrough manager, was among those present in the stands on Saturday to witness the former manager Neil Warnock’s winning return to west Yorkshire.