Ian Holloway left his position as Crystal Palace manager by mutual consent on Wednesday, admitting he wasn't the right man to try and keep the club in the Premier League.
Palace are second from bottom in the standings after winning just one of its first eight matches, with Holloway coming under huge pressure following a 4-1 home loss to Fulham on Monday.
"Ian felt that a new approach might help keep us in the division," Palace co-chairman Steve Parish said at a news conference in central London, where Holloway's departure was confirmed.
Holloway guided Palace back into the top flight after an eight-year absence following a victory over Watford in the second-tier League Championship playoffs in May.
He made 16 signings over the summer in a bid to strengthen the squad, but the new players have failed to gel quickly and Holloway acknowledged he "changed too much too quickly."
"I have to hold my hand up and say we didn't keep the spirit that got us up," Holloway said. "We need to shut up shop in this division. At the minute, we've got a whole new group there. Part of my talking with Steve was about am I the one with the energy left?"
He's the second manager to lose his job in the Premier League this season, after Paolo Di Canio at Sunderland. The 50-year-old Holloway, famed for his outspokenness and witty one-liners, held talks with Parish for an hour after the Fulham defeat and is reported in the British media to have offered his resignation in that meeting.
"I've enjoyed every minute of working with Ian. He leaves our club with his head held very high," Parish said. "I'd like to put the record straight. We've never fallen out. We've worked together brilliantly. We feel we need to move on to progress."
Holloway was unable to keep Blackpool in the Premier League in his only other season as manager in the English top flight. Tony Pulis, Neil Warnock and Roberto Di Matteo have already been linked with the vacancy at Palace, which hosts league leader Arsenal in its next match.
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