Nottingham Forest chiefs privately want owner Evangelos Marinakis to replace Ange Postecoglou with a “master” tactician, with the latter dismissed immediately after their 3-0 defeat to Chelsea.
Ange Postecoglou sacked by Nottingham Forest after Chelsea defeat
Goals from Josh Acheampong, Pedro Neto and Reece James cemented Postecoglou’s title as the longest-reigning manager in Premier League history, but his departure has been inevitable for some time.
Forest failed to win a single match during the Australian’s brief 39-day tenure, with reports from the international break suggesting Marinakis and his colleagues did their due diligence on a host of potential replacements.
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Ange Postecoglou’s tenure at Nottingham Forest |
Competition |
|---|---|
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Arsenal 3-0 Forest |
Premier League |
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Swansea Forest 3-2 |
Carabao Cup |
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Burnley 1-1 Forest |
Premier League |
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Real Betis 2-2 Forest |
Europa League |
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Forest 0-1 Sunderland |
Premier League |
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Forest 2-3 FC Midtjylland |
Europa League |
|
Newcastle Forest 2-0 |
Premier League |
|
Forest 0-3 Chelsea |
Premier League |
Postecoglou also broke a 100-year record at the City Ground, making the worst start for a new Forest boss in a century, forcing Marinakis to call time on the former Tottenham boss after a nightmarish spell.
In his final pre-match press conference, the 60-year-old let himself go, perhaps realizing that a defeat against Chelsea this afternoon would mean the end.
“We arrive at the current space [at Forest]and there’s another story to tell… that maybe I’m not a failed manager who was lucky enough to get this job, and maybe I’m more of a manager who, if you give them time, the story always ends the same way, at all my previous clubs it ends the same way – with me and a trophy,” Postecoglou said, just after defending his fate at Tottenham.
“So just to finish, and this is a long answer and probably won’t get any media coverage… you can look at these first five weeks and say, ‘He’s under pressure,’ and ‘He was lucky to get this job.’
“Or you can look at it and say, ‘There’s been a major change,’ because I’m trying to change the way we play, the players are adapting but there are definitely inconsistencies. Some will look at the weeds but I’m looking at what’s growing.
“I’m still really excited about this opportunity. I have a group of young players who are ready to make a change, which is the first thing, and we’re heading down that path.”
Marinakis had apparently decided to sack Postecoglou even before their clash with Chelsea was over, with the Greek billionaire even seen storming out of his seat (talkSPORT).
Postecoglou was informed of the decision just moments after the full-time whistle (talkSPORT), and he later said goodbye to his Forest players in the dressing room before the club officially announced his departure.
Attention now turns to who could replace Postecoglou in the hot seat.
A succession of managers have been linked over the past fortnight – including Sean Dyche, Oliver Glasner, Steve Cooper and Rafael Benitez – but it is Fulham boss Marco Silva who is seriously admired by the Forest hierarchy.
Nottingham Forest chiefs want Marinakis to replace Postecoglou with Marco Silva
According to the BBC, internal figures at the club have identified Silva as their “preferred option” to succeed Postecoglou.
The 48-year-old, who reportedly has an £8million release clause in his contract, is set to become a free agent at the end of this season, and it is believed Silva is likely to leave Craven Cottage in 2026 after rather public rows with the owners over their transfer activity.
However, it will be much more difficult to get him out of west London straight away as Forest are aware of the compensation costs owed if they decide to try and appoint Silva now.
Marinakis has only just paid Nuno and will also have to compensate Postecoglou now that Forest have also parted ways with him, meaning the club are not too keen to fork out even more money for a new manager.
The Tricky Trees have been exploring alternatives to Silva amid the difficulties surrounding his appointment, but if Marinakis decides to invest the money, it is clear he is an ideal candidate.
The former Everton and Hull City boss has done wonders at Fulham on a shoestring budget since leading them back to the Premier League at the first time of asking in 2022.
They also briefly struggled for Europe last season, despite their meager transfer spending compared to their rivals, and Silva has received praise as a “master” tactician from players who have worked with him.
“He printed what he was going to do in training, and it was a similar formula to what we had at Estoril. He’s a master,” former Hull striker Evandro told Premier League Brasil.
“I like to put Marco Silva on the same level as Sampaoli, because he has a management model that I also admire. Marco Silva has a great way of managing the group and his greatest characteristic is being rational and not emotional.
“I think in this coaching role, if you let emotions take over, things get lost easily, because in football you have to deal with the fans and the press.”
