Barclays Premier League

Martyn Ziegler examines Chelsea's decision to sack Luiz Felipe Scolari, after he had took charge of 26 Premier League matches.

By Martyn Ziegler, PA Chief Sports reporter

Big Phil, bigger disappointment, but not the biggest surprise...

Luiz Felipe Scolari arrived at Chelsea with a reputation that was more lofty than he deserved, and departs in ignominy with that reputation now in tatters.

It is not easy to turn a club from a force so powerful that it had not lost at home for more than four years into one that is so predictable and uninspired that it is not even viewed as a shock when Hull pull off a creditable draw at Stamford Bridge. Not easy, but Scolari managed it.

Chelsea's form of late has been poor - too poor for owner Roman Abramovich to stomach - and the club have acted with a ruthlessness borne of necessity.

Should current form continue until the end of the season then Arsenal would overtake their London rivals and steal that crucial, vital, season-making fourth spot. The mere possibility of that is unacceptable to a club such as Chelsea, into which Abramovich has ploughed so much money.

In recent weeks Scolari has been at pains to point that Chelsea have had injury problems and are not the club they once were in terms of spending.

That is true, but it is a loser's lament. Chelsea still have the biggest wage bill in the Premier League and a host of world-class players.

Whose fault is it that Didier Drogba once looked the most dangerous striker in the football, and now looks one of the most lacklustre?

Whose fault is it that Chelsea's lack of genuine wide players makes their predictable approach a simple one for opposing coaches to counter?

The buck for those faults stops with Scolari - he had to go, it was just a question of whether Chelsea would wait until the end of the season or make a clean break to try to rescue the remains of this campaign.

The Brazilian is a big enough man to fight his own battles, but one thing which can be said in his defence is that Chelsea overestimated his qualities in the first place.

He had never before managed a club in Europe and made his name at international level thanks to coaching sides so packed with brilliance that a novice would have struggled to mess things up.

His World Cup in 2002 was secured by a Brazil team including Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Ronaldinho at the peak of their powers.

His six years with Portugal coincided with the best emergence of talent enjoyed by any country since France in the mid-90s including the best international defence, the best player in the world in Cristiano Ronaldo, and plenty of strength in depth throughout the side.

With such quality available, Scolari's time with Portugal was ultimately something of a failure. There was certainly no chance of Abramovich being as forgiving with Chelsea.

Frank Rijkaard is the current favourite to succeed him, and what irony that would be given recent history when he was in charge of Barcelona and Jose Mourinho so impugned his character.

Rijkaard appears the obvious choice but who would really want to take on the Chelsea challenge at this point, when the rest of the season is picking up the pieces left over by another man's mistakes?

Unless Abramovich can convince the new manager that he will be judged on next season, rather than the remains of this one, the task looks an impossible one.

And, unfortunately for whoever takes over, it appears Chelsea are demanding immediate success during this campaign - and that makes the job a poisoned chalice.