LONDON -- Fulham fired manager Rene Meulensteen and appointed Felix Magath on Friday, saying "action was required" in its bid to avoid relegation from the Premier League. Magath, who has won three Bundesliga titles as a coach, signed an 18-month contract, the London club said in a statement. The German has a reputation for brutal training and fitness methods. His nicknames include "Torturer" and "Saddam." Fulhams statement failed to mention Meulensteen at all, but he later said he had been relieved of his duties after less than three months in the job. "They have hit the panic button on emotion and fear -- but hey ho, thats football," Meulensteen told the BBC. The firing came as a shock to many because the Dutchman appeared to be turning things around, getting a result against Manchester United and putting in a good effort against Liverpool despite losing in the last minute. But it wasnt enough for Fulham owner and chairman Shahid Khan. "Our club has shown promise in recent matches, but the fact is we have not won a league match since Jan. 1," Khan said. "Given our form, we can no longer merely hope that our fortunes will finally turn. And with 12 matches remaining and at least four points separating us from safety, we certainly can no longer post empty results. Action was required." The club is bottom of the table with 20 points from 26 matches. Magath has vast Bundesliga coaching experience, guiding Bayern Munich to back-to-back titles in 2005 and 2006, and lifting the league trophy again with Wolfsburg in 2009. He has also coached other German teams, including Hamburg and Schalke. But he has never managed in the Premier League. The 60-year-old Magath recently ruled out becoming coach again at Hamburg, which is in its own relegation battle and which he led to European glory as a player. He hasnt coached since leaving Wolfsburg in October 2012. "Here we go again. Im coming back into football," Magath said on his Facebook account. "I am manager of Fulham with immediate effect. Its a fantastic working environment for any coach and footballer." Khan welcomed the Germans experience, saying he had faith Magath could lift Fulham out of the relegation zone. "Im especially impressed with the reputation Felix has for coming into clubs at difficult times, often late in the season, and lifting them to their potential and beyond," Khan said. "Felix knows that is precisely the task awaiting him at Fulham, and he made it abundantly clear that he wants and is ready for the opportunity." Fulham said it would make an announcement soon about the clubs backroom staff. The teams next match is Saturday at West Bromwich Albion, which sits four points above the Cottagers in 17th place. Meulensteen, who previously worked under Alex Ferguson at Manchester United, was hired as Fulham manager after Martin Jol was sacked on Dec. 1. "I knew the owners were freaking out a little bit that there was the possibility of the club going down," Meulensteen told the BBC. "The way forward that we have discussed with the club was about longevity and in this case it is clearly an act of fear." Fulham held United to a 2-2 draw at Old Trafford on Sunday, but the team was beaten by a late penalty in a 3-2 loss to Liverpool on Wednesday at Craven Cottage. "I have not had a lot of time and people who came to the Manchester United and Liverpool games could see what I was trying to put in place," Meulensteen said. "I couldnt care less what they put in the statement, to be honest." Jaromir Jagr Jersey . Despite Arsenals financial firepower, the 31-year-old midfielder was the only arrival in the January transfer window. Signed until the end of the season as injury cover, Kallstrom might not be fit until mid-March after arriving Friday at Arsenal having injured his back earlier in the week while training with Spartak Moscow. 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Pospisil has now established the year-end World Tour Finals as the benchmark for a breakthrough season, with Pospisil and Sock provisionally standing ninth.BOSTON -- Phil Pressey had a career-high 13 assists, dove for loose balls and tipped a missed shot to a teammate with three seconds left. Not bad for Bostons 5-foot-11 undrafted rookie who learned after pregame warmups that he would start for just the ninth time. "I started before, so it really wasnt that big a deal," he said. It was to the Celtics, who held off a late surge and broke a season-long nine-game losing streak with a 106-103 win over the Charlotte Bobcats on Friday night. Pressey got the call when Rajon Rondo realized his left shin was too sore for him to play. "Phil Pressey gave us a great lift on the defensive end," said Avery Bradley, who led Boston with 22 points. "I feel like thats why we won the game." Boston led 104-103 before Jared Sullseconds left. Charlotte called timeout then got the ball to Jannero Pargo, who missed a straightaway 3-point shot as time expired. "I put my hands up to make him make a tough shot," Pressey said. "He was kind of fading away. If he made that shot we would have gone into overtime. If not, we win." The Bobcats were led by Al Jefferson with 32 points and 10 rebounds and Gary Neal with 13 points. "We got what we deserved," Jefferson said. "There was no way we can go in the playoffs with that type of mindset." Charlottes season-best five-game winning streak ended as it dropped into the seventh and the next-to-last playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. It trails Washington by one game after the Wizards beat Orlando 96-86 Friday night. Boston has the fourth-worst record in the NBA after entering the game tied with Orlando for the third-worst. Sullinger scored 20 points and Pressey had 10 with three steals. Charlotte also was missing its top guard, Kemba Walker, who sat out with a sore right groin. Coach Steve Clifford didnt know if he would play Saturday night against Philadelphia. "Im really more concerned about the guys on the floor,&quuot; Clifford said.dddddddddddd "We had very little defence." In a game of surges, Jeffersons short jumper gave Charlotte a 97-96 lead with 4:01 remaining. Boston went ahead 104-97 by scoring the next eight points on a 3-pointer by Sullinger, a layup by Jeff Green and a 3-pointer by Bradley. Luke Ridnours basket with 1:39 to go stopped the run and Jeffersons follow of a missed shot made it 104-101 with 51 seconds left. Then Jeffersons layup cut the lead to one point with 29 seconds to play. With the 24-second clock about to expire, Sullinger missed a 3-pointer, but Pressey tipped the rebound to Brandon Bass. The Bobcats fouled him and Boston took the ball out from the side. Sullinger was fouled immediately when he took the inbounds pass. "Thats just one of the winning plays that coach (Brad) Stevens talks about," Pressey said of his tip, "diving for a loose ball, boxing out, taking the charge, getting offensive rebounds." The Bobcats didnt do enough of that. "We just didnt put much into the game," Clifford said. Boston led 57-55 at halftime and scored the last 12 points of the third quarter, turning a 75-72 deficit into an 84-75 lead. Bass had five points and Green added four during the rally. The Celtics stretched that to 90-77 before the Bobcats came back with a 10-point run to cut the lead to three. Bradleys basket stopped the surge, but Charlotte tied it at 92 with 5:13 to go on a layup by Jefferson and a 3-pointer by Gerald Henderson. But two days after wasting a nine-point lead with 5:44 left and losing to Atlanta 105-97, the Celtics held on. "We learned our lesson," Sullinger said. "We stayed poised." NOTES: Boston F Kris Humphries returned after missing two games with a sore right knee. ... Sullinger suffered a mild left ankle sprain in the third quarter and returned in the fourth. ... Presseys previous high was 11 assists. ... Jefferson is 1-12 in his career against the Celtics. He has a double-double in 10 of his past 12 games. 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