Nottingham Forest head coach Ange Postecoglou has been relieved of his duties after just eight matches in charge.
Postecoglou was dismissed minutes after Saturday’s 3-0 loss to Chelsea at the City Ground, a result which left him without a win during his 39-day tenure. It is the second shortest reign in Premier League history, behind only Sam Allardyce’s 30 days in charge of Leeds United in 2023.
Postecoglou, 60, was only appointed on September 9 after former coach Nuno Espirito Santo departed the club. Nuno was subsequently appointed by West Ham United after the departure of Graham Potter earlier that month.
The former Tottenham Hotspur head coach oversaw Forest’s elimination from the Carabao Cup against Championship side Swansea City and his team collected just one point from five Premier League matches, a run of form which left them 17th in the standings and just one point above the relegation zone.
Postecoglou lost six and drew two of his eight matches in charge, the worst start by any permanent Forest manager in 100 years. He oversaw the start of Forest’s first European campaign in 30 years, drawing 2-2 with Real Betis and losing 3-2 to Midtjylland in their first two Europa League matches.
The Australian was subjected to “sacked in the morning” chants from a section of the home support at the City Ground across multiple matches during his short tenure.
Shortest managerial reigns in Premier League
ManagerClubYear(s)Days
Sam Allardyce
Leeds
2023
30
Ange Postecoglou
Nottingham Forest
2025
39
Les Reed
Charlton
2006
40
Javi Gracia
Leeds
2023
69
Rene Meulensteen
Fulham
2013-2014
75
Frank de Boer
Crystal Palace
2017
77
Quique Sanchez Flores
Watford
2019
85
Bob Bradley
Swansea
2016
85
Nathan Jones
Southampton
2022-2023
94
Colin Todd
Derby
2001-2002
98
A Nottingham Forest statement read: “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.”
Upon Postecoglou’s appointment, Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis said that the head coach was “a fantastic person to help us on our journey and achieve consistently all our ambitions”.
Postecoglou was hired by Forest after leaving Tottenham in the summer. The Australian spent two seasons in north London, finishing fifth in 2023-24 before winning the Europa League in May in his second campaign, the club’s first trophy in 17 years. However, poor Premier League form saw Spurs finish 17th in the table and he was sacked by the side in June. Their total of 22 losses was the most of any team not to be relegated in a 38-game Premier League season.
Postecoglou has three decades of managerial experience, beginning his career in Australia and eventually managing the national side between 2013 and 2017, leading their side at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
Spells with Japan’s Yokohama F. Marinos and Celtic in Scotland, winning the league title with both clubs, before joining Tottenham in 2023.
Nottingham Forest return to action against Porto in the Europa League on Thursday.
‘Too much change at once’
Eight games — including only five Premier League fixtures and just over month in the role — is a very short space of time in which to decide something is not working.
But Postecoglou arrived with a significant shadow hanging over him from his time at Tottenham. He arrived needing to prove he was not the wrong choice, before he had even started.
And his biggest issue has been that all of the criticisms that were fired at him during his time in London have been immediately mirrored during his brief time at the City Ground. A fierce, unwavering commitment to a style of play, a defiant attitude when he spoke in the media and, most significantly of all, an inability to deliver constantly positive results.
There were periods of play – most notably against Real Betis, but also in spells against Burnley and Sunderland — when Forest looked capable of pulling teams apart. The problem — as Spurs fans will testify — is that there were ultimately too many could have, would have and should haves, in a short space of time.
On top of that, Postecoglou was stepping into the shoes of a man, in Nuno Espirito Santo, who was not only very successful, but also highly respected within both the dressing room and among supporters.
He had delivered an identity that inspired Forest to challenge for Champions League football last season, before ultimately returning them to Europe for the first time in three decades, via qualification for the Europa League.
Postecoglou arrived with a very different philosophy, a very different approach and a very different personality — it proved to be too much change at once. The Greek-born Australian was appointed because he was seen as a winner — a man who had won trophies in Australia, Japan, Scotland and last season, when he guided Tottenham to success in the Europa League.
But what Forest have seen more of, during his short spell in charge, is the man who led Tottenham to 17th in the top flight last season, when they flirted with relegation into the Championship.