Nuno Espírito Santo sacked just three games into the season

A once-resurgent Nottingham Forest is now left looking for a new head coach just three games into the 2025/26 Premier League season after head coach Nuno Espírito Santo was sacked on Monday.

The split came after Espírito Santo fell out with Forest’s owner, Evangelos Marinakis; competitively, the Portuguese coach has been a leading figure for Forest and has continued to deliver top results.

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Espirito Santo took his feud with Marinakis public through the early weeks of the season, admitting he and the owner were “not as close” after originally working well together in past years. He also declared their “relationship has changed” and made several suggestions when meeting with media last week that he may be booted sooner rather than later.

Forest finished seventh under the 51-year-old’s guidance in 2024/25 and had already picked up four points in their opening three fixtures this season, leaving them in tenth place with the lion’s share of the campaign still to play.

Last year’s strong run took Forest, a past European winner, back to continental competitions.

But, Marinakis made the call anyway, relieving Espírito Santo of his duties this week in a sudden sacking.

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“Nottingham Forest confirms that, following recent circumstances, Nuno Espírito Santo has been relieved of his duties,” the club said in a statement. “The club thanks Nuno for his contribution during a very successful era at The City Ground, in particular his role in the 2024/25 season, which will forever be remembered fondly in the history of the club.”

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It’s particularly poor timing for Forest, considering the EPL transfer window just swung shut, meaning whoever does come in to replace the Portuguese helmsman will have to make due with the already established squad. Espírito Santo had made several big moves based around his long-term plans; he had just signed a three-year extension.

Former Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou is a frontrunner to succeed Nuno. The Australian has been out of work since being sacked in June. He took the Spurs to a 17th-place finish, but won the Europa League at the same time.

Forest will play Arsenal after this ongoing international break wraps up on September 13.