Brazil's Flamengo fired coach Jorge Sampaoli on Thursday, less than a week after the Argentinian missed his last attempt at winning a title at the club.

Former Argentina, Sevilla and Marseille coach Sampaoli took the job in Rio de Janeiro in April. His contract was due to expire at the end of 2024.

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"The board thanks the professional [Sampaoli] and wishes him well in his career," Flamengo said on its social media channels.

According to ESPN Brasil sources, Sampaoli's exit has cleared the path to move forward in hiring Tite.

Flamengo executives had been talking with the former Brazil national team coach for the last several weeks and are trying to seal an agreement in the next few days, sources said.

Sampaoli has faced difficulty since he joined Flamengo, who on Sunday failed to defend their Brazilian Cup title after a 2-1 aggregate loss to São Paulo.

Weeks earlier Sampaoli's team were knocked out by Paraguay's Olímpia in the round of 16 of the Copa Libertadores, which Flamengo won last year.

Flamengo are currently in seventh place in the Brazilian championship after 24 matches. The team are trailing leaders and local Rio rivals Botafogo by 11 points.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.