On Thursday, Bayern Munich confirmed that Carlo Ancelotti had been given the sack following a 3-0 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League.The former Chelsea and Real Madrid coach joined the Bavarian giants in 2016 and won the Bundesliga in his first season in charge.However, Bayern have started the 2017/18 campaign in relatively poor form and currently lie 3rd in the table."Our team’s performances since the start of the season have not met our expectations," said Bayern Munich chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge in an official statement."The match in Paris clearly showed we had to take immediate action. Hasan Salihamidžić and I met Carlo today for full and frank discussions where we informed him of our decision."I'd like to thank Carlo for his time working with us and I'm sorry about the way it has developed. Carlo is my friend and he will remain so, but we had to take a professional decision in the interests of FC Bayern."I expect the team to produce a positive response and show absolute determination to achieve our targets for the season."Assistant coach Willy Sagnol has temporarily been put in charge whilst the club consider who will be brought in as Ancelotti's replacement.

Ancelotti responds on Twitter

He boasted a 70% win rate during his time in Germany but it was not considered good enough by his bosses at Bayern Munich.

Despite the surprising sacking, the 58-year-old Italian coach responded with a typically classy message on social media late on Thursday night.

"It has been a great honour to form part of Bayern’s history. I would like to thank the Club, the Players and it's amazing fans. #MiaSanMia"

Ancelotti is already being linked with a return to AC Milan - a club where he delivered two Champions League titles as a manager and two European Cups as a player.

Vincenzo Montella is the current boss at the Rossoneri but you would imagine that most fans would welcome Ancelotti back in a heartbeat.

Milan director Massimiliano Mirabelli commented on Ancelotti's surprise sacking but insisted that a fairytale return is not going to happen.

"It was sad, because Ancelotti proved himself to be one of the best coaches in the world and we don't know why this decision was made," Mirabelli told Sky Sport Italia.

"We are disappointed as fans of sport, but we have a coach who is younger than Ancelotti and just as talented. We believe in this project with Montella and want to reach the end of this journey with him.

"I understand these things are very tempting for you to write about, but everyone does their own job. We say that we are holding on tight to Montella."