Nottingham Forest boss Nuno Espirito Santo sacked

Nottingham Forest head coach Nuno Espirito Santo has been sacked after 20 months in charge.

The position of the Portuguese coach had been uncertain for two weeks since he publicly declared his relationship with owner Evangelos Marinakis had deteriorated.

Talks are under way over Nuno's replacement, with an appointment imminent.

In a statement, Forest thanked Nuno "for his contribution during a very successful era at the City Ground" and said he would "always hold a special place" in their journey.

The 51-year-old took charge of Forest in December 2023 after the dismissal of Steve Cooper and helped them preserve their top-flight status.

Last term he guided the club to seventh in the Premier League - their highest finish since 1994-95 - as they qualified for Europe for the first time in three decades.

Forest currently sit 10th in the table after suffering a 3-0 home defeat by West Ham before September's international break.

Despite the club's success on the pitch during Nuno's time as manager, his relationship with Marinakis became increasingly strained.

In May, Marinakis appeared to confront Nuno on the pitch following a 2-2 draw against Leicester at the City Ground.

Forest later said the incident was because of the owner's frustration that striker Taiwo Awoniyi had continued to play following an 88th-minute injury, which subsequently required what was described as "urgent" surgery.

The club said there was "no confrontation" and it was "fake news" to suggest otherwise.

However, those missed points against an already-relegated side were part of a run that saw Forest - who had been in contention for Champions League qualification - only pick up eight points from their last eight matches of the 2024-25 campaign.

They qualified for the Conference League but were moved into the Europa League for 2025-26 at Crystal Palace's expense after the Eagles were deemed to be in breach of multi-club ownership rules.

In August, Nuno revealed he feared for his job.

Internal tensions at the club were believed to centre around disagreements over their transfer business.

Edu was appointed as Forest's global head of football earlier in the summer and has taken firm control over the club's recruitment operation.

"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," Nuno said.

"Our relationship has changed and we are not as close. Everybody at the club should be together but this is not the reality."

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