Alfred Schreuder joined Hoffenheim from Dutch side Ajax on a three-year deal at the start of this season.

But the Bundesliga club has terminated the 47-year-old’s contract after just 33 games in charge, despite Hoffenheim being currently seventh in the league and in contention to qualify for Europe.

In a statement, the club said that differences over the future direction of the squad had led to the decision.

"We were of different opinions regarding key details, so that a cooperation beyond the end of this season no longer makes sense," explained the club's head of professional football, Alexander Rosen.

Schreuder took over from predecessor Julian Nagelsmann last July and inherited a squad which had lost several key players in Joelinton, Kerem Demirbay, Nico Schulz and Nadiem Amiri. After a difficult start with just one win from their first six Bundesliga games, an away win over Bayern Munich in October saw Hoffenheim begin to climb the table.

But the club from Sinsheim, whose controversial recent rise has been bankrolled by local billionaire Dietmar Hopp, have only won four times since the turn of the year. Hoffenheim drew away to relegation-threatened Fortuna Düsseldorf at the weekend in what has turned out to be Schreuder’s final game.

Nevertheless, with Hoffenheim still well positioned to qualify for next season’s Europa League, it’s the future of the club that appears to be the sticking point.

"Unfortunately, we couldn’t agree on a common path on which to take Hoffenheim in future, a development which I regret," said Schreuder, who also spent two years as Nagelsmann’s assistant coach between 2015 and 2017 and knows the club well.

"It’s not unusual to have different opinions in professional life," added Schreuder. "So you have to honest with each other and take the right decisions."

A team of coaches from within the club will take over the first team for Hoffenheim’s remaining four games against RB Leipzig, Augsburg, Union Berlin and Borussia Dortmund, while director Rosen will also take on a more hands-on role.