King removed in complete defeat (4)

I believe the answer is:

rout

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'complete defeat' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'king removed' is the wordplay.
'king' becomes 'R' (abbreviation for rex, king in Latin).
'removed' becomes 'out' (I can't justify this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'r'+'out'='ROUT'

'in' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for rout that I've seen before include "Scatter on tour" , "Whitewash" , "Act like a pig" , "Send fleeing" , "Completely defeat" .)

I've seen this clue in The Sun.

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