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Greek champions Olympiacos have sacked coach Temuri Ketsbaia on the eve of their opening Champions League group match.

"Olympiacos announces the mutual solution of its collaboration with coach Temuri Ketsbaia," the club announced on their website. "The technical leadership of the team will be temporarily undertaken by Bozidar Bandovic. His assistant will be Andreas Niniadis."

Ketsbaia, 41, who signed a three-year contract on May 25, leaves the Pireaus club after a 2-0 away victory over Larissa and a goalless home draw with Kavala in the league.

He also successfully negotiated two rounds of Champions League qualifying with a 4-0 aggregate win over Slovan Bratislava and a 3-0 victory against Sherrif Tiraspol, meaning his side were yet to concede a goal in six competitive matches.

The team were, however, criticised for performances in the draw with newly-promoted Kavala and a 5-0 friendly defeat to Erogtelis.

Olympiacos host Dutch side AZ Alkmaar at the Georgios Karaiskakis stadium on Wednesday in their first Group H match.

Club spokesman Giannis Moralis urged the Pireaus club's fans to show their support on Wednesday.

"Our fans need to get behind the team," he told the Greek sports radio station Sentra FM.

"The club has passed through a tough 10 days. We want the supporters behind us because we are competing in the Champions League.

"Usually a change in coach gives a different impulse and climate in a team and this did not go well. As long as he was in charge there are a 1,000 reasons for this move.

"The team did not show the strength that we wished, neither were the results satisfactory. This was the only solution. There are no hidden reasons."

The decision and explanation do not, however, sit with results and it has been reported that dressing-room unrest at his training methods were the underlying cause behind the parting of ways.

Ketsbaia, a former Newcastle United midfielder, replaced Spanish coach Ernesto Valverde after becoming the first man to lead Cypriot club Anorthosis Famagusta into the group stages of the Champions League last season.

Reuters