Ange Postecoglou is set to become the next Nottingham Forest manager following the shock departure of Nuno Espirito Santo in the early hours of Tuesday.
Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis wanted a quick appointment after pulling the trigger on Nuno and has already made his decision after holding talks with former Tottenham boss Postecoglou.
The contract will last until the summer of 2027 and an announcement could come as soon as Tuesday.
The first game for Ange Postecoglou is set to be away to Arsenal on Saturday lunchtime.
Postecoglou has been without a job since being sacked by Tottenham at the end of last season and was always the top candidate for Marinakis. Although brought up in Australia, Postecoglou’s Greek heritage appeals to compatriot Marinakis, as well as his attacking style of football and Europa League success at Spurs.
Ange Postecoglou, Manager of Tottenham Hotspur. (Photo by Alex Pantling – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images)
Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers and Jose Mourinho were also linked to the job. Rodgers is in the final year of his contract at Celtic, where there is some friction behind the scenes, while Mourinho is available following his sacking by Fenerbahce on August 29.
However, the fact that Postecoglou is ready to step into the job straight away made the top choice.
Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner, Bournemouth head coach Andoni Iraola, Mauricio Pochettino who manages the United States men’s national team and Fulham’s Marco Silva were mentioned in reports, but weren’t considered viable options due to the tight turnaround.
Postecoglou will now have to negotiate a fractious situation at Forest after the bitter exit of Espirito Santo, who cast doubt on his own future in August by saying there was ‘no smoke without fire’ amid reports he could be sacked.
Greek owner Evangelos Marinakis has been an admirer of the former Celtic and Spurs head coach, whose family are of Greek origin, for some time. In July, Marinakis presented Postecoglou with a special award in Greece for being the first coach of Greek origin to win a European trophy in the men’s game.
“Angie has spoken many times about Greece,” said Marinakis. “It is very important for a person to be proud and shout about his origins.
“He achieved it with a team that was not winning titles and was struggling. With this success with Tottenham, he made Greece proud.
“He is a very good coach and wherever he goes, he will make Greece proud.”
