Former Tottenham boss Christian Gross has blasted the players involved in a reported revolt that led to his sacking by Schalke.
Gross became the fourth permanent manager to be sacked by the Bundesliga side in what has been a torrid season.
They are currently rock bottom of the German top-flight and are nine points adrift of safety having won just one game all season.
That solitary victory came under Gross, who was only appointed at the end of December, but it was not enough to save him.
The Swiss manager previously had a spell at Spurs, with a revolt reportedly led by two former players of Tottenham's fierce rivals Arsenal resulting in his departure.
German news organisation Bild claim that Sead Kolasinac and Shkodran Mustafi, along with veteran striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, were the instigators of a 'player revolt' against Gross.
Bild report that the players were unhappy with Gross' tendency to confuse players' names and his tone while addressing the club's stars, with his training methods and tactics also called into question.
David Wagner, Manuel Baum and Huub Stevens are the other three managers to have been let go this season, with assistant boss Rainer Widmayer, squad manager Sascha Riether and head of performance Werner Leuthard also departing the Veltins-Arena.
Since his sacking over the weekend, Gross has blasted the reported revolt.
“This report of the revolt, of the uprising or whatever, naturally caused great unrest,” he told Blick.
“I talked to [Schalke sporting director] Jochen Schneider on Saturday morning - he told me explicitly that there was no player with him.
"And I also addressed the players directly and said that they should come to me directly if they have problems.
"It can be the case that you don't like my face, that you don't like me. But then you have to say it openly, no problem."
Gross has also insisted that he could have saved Schalke from their first relegation since 1988.
"I am very disappointed. Especially since as a coach I still have the feeling that the team is developing," he said.
"We were on the right track and are making progress and I am still convinced that Schalke can still avoid relegation."
