December 19, (THEWILL) – Nottingham Forest have taken the decision to relieve manager Steve Cooper of his duties, confirming his departure on Tuesday afternoon. Cooper has been in charge at the City Ground since September 2021, guiding the club to promotion from the Championship last season.
However, with Forest currently 17th in the English Premier League table and having won just one of their last 13 league matches, the board felt a change was necessary to try and preserve their top-flight status.
Advanced negotiations are underway to appoint former Wolverhampton Wanderers and Tottenham Hotspur boss Nuno Espirito Santo as the new head coach. The Portuguese manager has previous experience achieving promotion to the EPL with Wolves. If finalised, he will take over a Forest side with just one victory since early November, including a heavy 5-nil defeat away at Fulham.
Cooper initially oversaw a remarkable transformation after arriving at the club while they were bottom of the second tier. After leading them to the playoffs and achieving promotion, he was rewarded with a new long-term contract in October 2022. However, top-flight survival has proven a tough challenge this campaign.
Despite a promising start, including an impressive win at Chelsea, results and performances have declined dramatically. With the club hovering just above the relegation zone, the board have taken action amidst fears of an immediate return to the Championship. Santo will be tasked with quickly addressing their form to preserve their top division status.
The new manager’s priority will be getting more out of forwards Divock Origi, Chris Wood, Anthony Elanga and Callum Hudson-Odoi while Taiwo Awoniyi recuperates. He will have to also improve the defence that includes Ola Aina, which has shipped five goals on two separate occasions. Achieving greater consistency and steel will be key if Forest are to avoid the drop in the second half of the campaign.
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Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
