Nottingham Forest appoint Ange Postecoglou as head coach | OneFootball

Nottingham Forest have appointed Ange Postecoglou as their new head coach following the dismissal of Nuno Espirito Santo.

The Australian, who left Tottenham Hotspur in June, will take charge of Forest’s trip to Arsenal on Saturday, with several of his former Spurs staff expected to join him at the City Ground.

Postecoglou emerged as the leading candidate to replace Nuno after Forest moved quickly to make a change during the international break.

The 60-year-old arrives with a strong record of success across multiple leagues and is tasked with taking Forest forward in their first European campaign in three decades.

Owner Evangelos Marinakis praised the appointment, stressing the importance of Postecoglou’s experience. “We are bringing a coach to the club who has a proven and consistent record of winning trophies,” Marinakis said.

“His experience of coaching teams at the highest level, along with his desire to build something special with us at Forest, makes him a fantastic person to help us on our journey and achieve consistently all our ambitions.”

Postecoglou won the Europa League with Spurs last season, ending the club’s 17-year wait for silverware. However, Tottenham’s domestic struggles cost him his job, as they finished 17th in the Premier League with 22 defeats.

His career began in Australia, where he won league titles with Brisbane Roar and managed the national team at the 2014 World Cup.

A move to Japan followed, where he led Yokohama F. Marinos to the J-League crown in 2019. He then joined Celtic, winning five domestic trophies in two years, including consecutive league titles, before moving to England.

Forest hope his pedigree will help them build on last season’s seventh-place finish under Nuno, which secured Europa League qualification after Crystal Palace dropped into the Conference League.

The Portuguese coach had been at odds with the club’s hierarchy over transfers and his relationship with Marinakis, with tensions escalating in recent weeks.

Forest invested heavily in the summer with 13 signings, including a club-record deal for Omari Hutchinson, but results were mixed in the opening three matches, culminating in a 3-0 defeat to West Ham United that proved Nuno’s final game.

Postecoglou’s immediate challenge will be to stabilise the squad and prepare for both domestic and European competition. Forest’s trip to the Emirates will be a difficult debut, but the club believes they have secured a coach capable of meeting their long-term ambitions.