Nottingham Forest has announced the dismissal of their head coach, Nuno Espirito Santo, after a 21-month tenure. The Portuguese coach's position had been under scrutiny for two weeks following his public admission of a deteriorating relationship with club owner Evangelos Marinakis.
The club is currently in talks to find a suitable replacement for Nuno. Former Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou is among the potential candidates being considered. An official announcement regarding the appointment is expected soon.
Successful era ends at City Ground
In an official statement released post-midnight, Nottingham Forest expressed gratitude towards Nuno "for his contribution during a very successful era at the City Ground." They further acknowledged that he would "always hold a special place" in their journey.
Nuno took over as head coach in December 2023 following Steve Cooper's dismissal and played an instrumental role in preserving their top-flight status. Last season, he led the team to seventh place in the Premier League table - their highest finish since 1994-95 - qualifying them for Europe after three decades. His success earned him a new three-year deal signed last June.
Despite recent setbacks including a 3-0 home defeat by West Ham before September's international break, Forest currently ranks tenth on the table.
Internal tensions lead to departure
While Nuno’s tenure was marked by significant success on-field, off-field tensions with Marinakis were brewing. In August, he publicly expressed concerns about job security due to disagreements over transfer business decisions within the club.
Nuno had previously criticized Forest’s summer transfer window activity as wasteful despite Edu’s appointment as global head of football and control over recruitment operations earlier this summer. The club made approximately £196m worth of signings based on reported initial fees during this period while ending contracts with players like Anthony Elanga, Danilo, and Wayne Hennessey.
Nuno Espirito Santo, Portuguese manager, said:
"I always had a very good relationship with the owner - last season we were very close and spoke on a daily basis. This season it is not so well. Our relationship has changed and we are not as close. Everybody at the club should be together but this is not the reality."
In May last season, Marinakis reportedly confronted Nuno on the pitch following a 2-2 draw against Leicester at the City Ground. The club later clarified that the incident was due to Marinakis's frustration over striker Taiwo Awoniyi continuing to play despite an injury requiring "urgent" surgery. They denied any confrontation and dismissed reports suggesting otherwise as "fake news."
However, this incident marked a turning point in Forest’s campaign. The team only managed to secure eight points from their last eight matches of the 2024-25 season after missing out on points against an already-relegated side. Despite these setbacks, Forest qualified for the Conference League but were moved into the Europa League for 2025-26 at Crystal Palace's expense after they breached multi-club ownership rules.
