Nottingham Forest: Nuno needs to start with a massive bounce after replacing hero Steve Cooper
There was little room for sentiment and seasonal joy this Christmas week at the City Ground, with the news that Steve Cooper was to be sacked and replaced by Nuno Espírito Santo. The mission for the new manager – as well as owner Evangelos Marinakis – of winning over an angry fanbase starts here.
In truth, Cooper’s sacking was a long time in the making, with the former Swansea and England Under-17 man nearly dismissed twice last season when results worsened and the chances of survival narrowed, but he held on, partly because there was no suitable alternative but largely because of the strength of his connection with the fans.
But the writing was on the wall after the Reds’ 5-0 hammering at Fulham two weeks ago, which saw Marinakis leave Craven Cottage with 20 minutes to go and his access badge amazingly found in a bush near the west London stadium.
This was the nadir in a run of form that saw Cooper’s men win just one of 13 league games, although the loss to Marco Silva’s side was the only really bad defeat in this time, and other results could have gone their way.
Performances and commitment from the players were not reflected in points, which has only seen the club sink closer to the relegation zone – they currently sit 17th, five points clear of Luton.
That was not good enough for Marinakis, who could point to his bankrolling of the club since his 2017 takeover, with upwards of £150m spent last season, albeit on a single-year record of 29 players, with the majority not being Cooper’s choices.
The failure of many these players at the City Ground saw Marinakis get rid of most of the recruitment team, and install his 24-year-old son, Miltadis, as the de facto sporting director. If ever the overbearing nature of the owner was summarised.
Being in control of 47-time Greek champions Olympiacos already, it is not too surprising that he wants to turn Forest into a super-power in the English game. After promotion, while everyone else was basking in the glow of a return to the top flight, Marinakis said “as of today, we are aiming to rewrite history and win more trophies. This is only the beginning.”
For the fans, though, Cooper will always be the man who brought Forest back to the promised land after an excruciating and seemingly never-ending 23-year absence. Not only did he take them up, he did so after taking them over in September with the club rooted to the bottom of the Championship.
He then kept them in the top flight for the first time since the mid-90s, with their last appearance in the Premier League in 1998/99 being a sorry 20th-placed finish, 11 points off safety and featuring an 8-1 home loss to Manchester United.
The most beloved manager in Nottingham since Brian Clough, which was seen in the countless tributes across social media in the news of his sacking, Cooper’s absence will be greatly felt, which only makes Nuno’s task even harder.
Normally with a club mired in trouble, a managerial change would be welcomed by all but that is not the case here. It also doesn’t help that the 49-year-old is arriving at the City Ground with his once-stellar reputation damaged by recent seasons and jobs.
Of course, he did great work with Wolves, storming to promotion before achieving back-to-back seventh-placed finishes, the club’s highest in near-30 years, as well as a first FA Cup semi-final in two decades.
This was greatly aided by the club’s working relationship with super-agent Jorge Mendes, but even with the arrival of numerous Portuguese stars at Molineux, Wolves fell off in Nuno’s fourth and final season, finishing 13th before he departed.
A sorry spell at Spurs followed, which lasted just four months and 17 games, before he became one of the first to make the jump to the Saudi Pro League, to Al-Ittihad, where he won a League and Cup double before the great 2023 summer expansion began.
He was dismissed from his role in November after rumours of discontent with Karim Benzema and other star names that had migrated east. It hardly speaks to a man in demand and one ready to fire Forest up the table.
Nor does his style of play, which did not help him at Spurs in the trying times. It makes for a very uninspiring choice to replace a club legend, at least on paper.
Needing to hit the ground running to appease both fans and his incredibly ambitious boss, Nuno finds himself with a very difficult opening three games against Bournemouth, Newcastle and Manchester United before the clock hits midnight on the year.
It could be the decision that helps define Nuno’s standing in the English game, Marinakis’ reign at the City Ground and the future top-flight prospects of a famous club.
