Nottingham Forest made headlines on Tuesday, appointing Ange Postecoglou as their new manager barely a day after parting ways with Nuno Espírito Santo. It wasn’t just a quick change on the sidelines. The move comes with symbolism, risk and a real sense of history for the club.
The 60-year-old Australian comes in straight from a turbulent year at Tottenham. He signed a contract through June 2027 and now faces the challenge of turning Forest into a side capable of competing not just in English soccer, but also on the European stage.
From European triumph to Premier League collapse
Postecoglou’s time at Spurs was a rollercoaster. On the bright side, he delivered the Europa League in 2025 with a win over Manchester United in an all-English final. That victory ended a 41-year drought for Tottenham in Europe and snapped a 17-year wait for any kind of trophy. But the league form told a completely different story. Spurs slumped to their worst Premier League finish since 1977, ending up 17th with 22 defeats.
That season stretched patience to the limit. Fans had grown tired, the board lost faith, and by June his time was up. Even so, his résumé is hard to ignore. At Celtic, he claimed a domestic treble. With Brisbane Roar and Yokohama F. Marinos, he lifted league titles. He even took charge of Australia’s national team. Forest is gambling that his struggles in London don’t erase the pattern of success he’s shown almost everywhere else.
Forest’s dilemma and the Marinakis influence
The dismissal of Nuno Espírito Santo also helps explain why Postecoglou was brought in. The Portuguese coach had led Forest to a surprising seventh-place finish in the last Premier League season, securing the club’s first European competition in 30 years. But results alone couldn’t fix the fractured relationship with owner Evangelos Marinakis and football executive Edu Gaspar. Tension grew, and the split became inevitable.
Marinakis, though, was quick to back the new boss. He praised Postecoglou’s “consistent record of success” and described the appointment as an important step toward Forest’s long-term goals. The fact that both men share Greek heritage only deepened the sense of alignment between owner and coach — something Nuno no longer had.
There’s no easing in for Postecoglou. On Saturday, Forest visits Arsenal, Tottenham’s historic rival. The return to London is expected to be hostile, given how things ended at Spurs after such a bruising league campaign. The atmosphere will be hostile and the pressure heavy. One game won’t decide his fate, but it’ll set the mood for what could be a bumpy new chapter.