Nottingham, England — In a dramatic turn that has stunned the Premier League, Nottingham Forest have parted ways with head coach Ange Postecoglou less than 40 days after his appointment, following a humiliating 3-0 home defeat to Chelsea on Saturday. The Australian’s tenure, which began with high hopes after his Europa League triumph with Tottenham Hotspur, ended in abrupt fashion, marking one of the shortest managerial spells in top-flight history.
The sacking was confirmed by the club in a terse statement just 19 minutes after the final whistle at the City Ground: “Nottingham Forest Football Club can confirm that after a series of disappointing results and performances, Ange Postecoglou has been relieved of his duties as head coach with immediate effect. The club will make no further comment at this time.” Postecoglou, who replaced Nuno Espírito Santo on September 9, leaves Forest with just one point from five Premier League matches and no wins across eight games in all competitions, including a 3-1 Europa League loss to Midtjylland. The team now sits 17th in the table, one point above the relegation zone.
The final match under Postecoglou unfolded as a tale of two halves. Forest started brightly, creating early chances through Morgan Gibbs-White and Elliot Anderson, but failed to break the deadlock before the interval. Chelsea, however, exploded into life after the restart. Goals from Pedro Neto, Joao Pedro, and a debut senior strike from academy product Josh Acheampong sealed a comprehensive victory for Enzo Maresca’s side, with Reece James also involved in the scoring. As Chelsea pulled away to a 2-0 lead within minutes of the second half, boos echoed around a frustrated City Ground, and fans began streaming toward the exits.
Club owner Evangelos Marinakis, who had publicly backed Postecoglou as his top target following Nuno’s dismissal, departed his seat in the stands roughly an hour before the end, just after Chelsea’s second goal. Sources close to the club indicate that the decision to act swiftly had been brewing amid a run of four straight defeats, with Postecoglou’s high-pressing style failing to gel with the squad’s personnel. “The leap from Nuno’s pragmatic counter-attack to Postecoglou’s high-pressing, flowing game was too big,” one insider noted, pointing to the team’s 20 goals conceded in eight games and zero clean sheets.
In the immediate aftermath, Postecoglou was informed of his fate within roughly 10 minutes of the final whistle during a brief conversation with George Syrianos, Forest’s global technical director, in the tunnel area. His last act as manager was a poignant return to the locker room, where he addressed his players one final time. According to reports, the 59-year-old apologized for not achieving more and wished the squad the best for the remainder of the campaign. He then walked alone to his car and departed the stadium, bypassing the mandatory post-match press conference.
Captain Ryan Yates reflected the dressing room’s dismay: “Ange came in after the game, debriefed the game and then I went out to do some running. I came back and news had broke that he had gone. We’re all extremely disappointed with how recent results are going.” Earlier in the week, Postecoglou had only just moved into a new flat in the Nottingham area, underscoring the suddenness of his exit.
Postecoglou’s arrival at Forest came after a mixed two-year stint at Tottenham, where he guided the Spurs to fifth place and a Europa League title in 2023-24 before a dismal Premier League finish led to his June dismissal. Despite his decorated CV—including league titles with Yokohama F. Marinos and Celtic—the Australian struggled to win over skeptical supporters. Chants of “sacked in the morning” had rung out as early as his European debut last month.
This is the second managerial change at Forest this season under Marinakis, whose hands-on approach has drawn criticism. Former England captain Alan Shearer remarked: “Ultimately the results haven’t been good enough and that is on Ange. But Marinakis must take a share of the blame for the instability.” The club now faces a Europa League clash with Porto on Thursday, with potential replacements including Roberto Mancini, Sean Dyche, and even Fulham’s Marco Silva—though the latter’s £8m buyout clause poses financial hurdles amid Profit and Sustainability Rules concerns.
As Forest grapple with yet another rebuild, the question lingers: Can Marinakis steady the ship, or is this the latest chapter in a season of chaos? For Postecoglou, a man who once joked about his “sleeping on the job” philosophy, this Nottingham nightmare ends far sooner than anyone anticipated.