Lewis Holtby has defended Fulham boss Felix Magath's controversial methods and said: "He's not a murderer."

The German boss has earned nicknames such as 'The Torturer' and 'Saddam Hussein' in his homeland due to his tough training regimes.

However, Holtby, who played under the 60-year-old at Schalke, says the criticism has been unfair.

He said: "Some things that have been said about him are over the top - he's not a murderer.

"But if you compare him to Saddam, it's not very generous or very nice. It's not like he killed anyone. I think it's a disgrace if you call someone Saddam.

Big task... but Holtby reckons Magath can keep Fulham up

"Of course he trains hard, but everyone has their own philosophy. He won a couple of titles in Germany, you have to respect that."

Hotlby admits his time under Magath as an 18-year-old trying to make the grade helped 'toughen him up'.

And the on-loan Spurs man believes his time at Schalke was a big learning curve.

He added: "It was really hard. I'm not saying we didn't suffer, but I'm not complaining. For me, it was very important to have him as a manager.

"He toughened me up physically and mentally, when you're 18 you grow pretty quickly. That's stayed with me until now."