Nottingham Forest are expected to sack boss Steve Cooper on Tuesday, Sky Sports News has been told.
The decision will not come as a surprise to Cooper, whose relationship with owner Evangelos Marinakis has deteriorated to the point where it is now “difficult”.
Former Wolves and Tottenham boss Nuno Espirito Santo will fly into the UK from his home in Portugal on Tuesday to begin formal talks about taking over at Forest, who have won just one of their last 13 matches.
Marinakis, a Greek businessman, is aware of the fans’ affection for Cooper, who returned Forest to the Premier League for the first time in 23 years. But it is understood he has concerns Cooper might be tiring of the project and fresh ideas are needed.
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After huge investment in the squad which has seen 44 new players recruited since the club won promotion in May 2022, Marinakis is not prepared to allow results to continue to slide.
That has prompted the Forest owner and his senior leadership team to consider a host of possible replacements, with Nuno understood to be among the favourites. Initial talks have been positive.
Another ex-Wolves boss, Julen Lopetegui, has also been under consideration, along with former Eintracht Frankfurt coach Oliver Glasner.
Nuno is out of work after leaving Saudi Pro League club Al Ittihad earlier this year, and Sky Sports News has been told he is keen on a return to the Premier League, feeling his reputation was unfairly tarnished after his ill-fated four-month spell in charge of Tottenham.
The Portuguese had a hugely successful spell at Molineux between 2017 and 2021, leading the club from the Championship to consecutive seventh-placed finishes in the Premier League, and the quarter-finals of the Europa League.
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FREE TO WATCH: Highlights of Nottingham Forest’s loss to Tottenham in the Premier League last Friday
‘Marinakis has looked past Nuno’s failure at Spurs’
Sky Sports News senior reporter Rob Dorsett:
“My understanding is that the football bosses at Nottingham Forest accept there were mitigating circumstances around Nuno’s appointment at Tottenham, that he didn’t have a great relationship with Daniel Levy and took over in difficult circumstances.
“I think there will be some people on the outside who will look at a potential relationship between Nuno and Evangelos Marinakis and say that could be a recipe a disaster – they are two very strong men with strong opinions on both sides.
“But crucially, part of the reason Nuno appeals to Forest is because of his success at Wolves and the fact he was a head coach at Molineux – that’s what Marinakis and the people at Forest would like. Nuno accepted at Wolves that other people might be buying the players, with his involvement of course but not the final say, and his job was to bond them together and form a tactic that worked.
“And that’s a similar structure to the one they’ve got at Nottingham Forest, so that’s a big reason why he appeals. He’s available having left that job in Saudi Arabia and Marinakis is impressed by the man that he is and the manager he’s proved to be in the past. He’s looked past what happened at Tottenham.”
Lopetegui targets Premier League return: ‘I’m just starting here’
Julen Lopetegui discusses why he is eyeing a Premier League return, what he’s been up to during his break, and why he only has “very good memories” at Wolves during an exclusive interview with Sky Sports News.
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Former Wolves boss Julen Lopetegui reveals he is targeting a return to management in the Premier League
Nottingham Forest’s next five fixtures
Saturday 30th December 5:00pm
Kick off 5:30pm
December 23: Bournemouth (H) – Premier League, kick-off 3pm
December 26: Newcastle (A) – Premier League, kick-off 12.30pm
December 30: Manchester United (H) – Premier League, kick-off 5.30pm – live on Sky Sports
January 7: Blackpool or Forest Green Rovers (H) – FA Cup, kick-off 2pm
January 20: Brentford (A) – Premier League, kick-off 5.30pm – live on Sky Sports
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