The straight-talking Australian has replaced Nuno Espirito Santo in the City Ground dugout, but he must change his ways to survive
After a brief stay of execution, the axe has come down on Nuno Espirito Santo at Nottingham Forest just three games into the new season. The Portuguese has paid the ultimate price for a behind-the-scenes feud with recently-appointed global head of football, Edu, speaking candidly about his frustrations in the transfer window and the deterioration of his relationship with notoriously ruthless club owner, Angelos Marinakis.
Bizarrely, the decision to sack Nuno was confirmed shortly after midnight on Tuesday. Thirteen hours later, his replacement was already in situ; after brief links with a clutch of Premier League managers and the out-of-work Jose Mourinho, former Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou is Forest's new head coach.
It is a divisive appointment that is certain to ruffle some feathers after the Australian led Spurs to both a Europa League crown a dismal 17th-place Premier League finish in a bewildering 2024-25 campaign that was plagued by injuries. The 60-year-old is seemingly charged with delivering more silverware at the City Ground, but he must learn from past mistakes to be a long-term success.
Getty Images SportTactical antithesis
One of the most glaringly obvious issues with this appointment is that Postecoglou is a tactical misfit for a club whose success under Nuno in 2024-25 was built upon defensive solidity, a willingness to bide their time and control games without the ball, and relying on swift transitions and deadly counter-attacking.
Meanwhile, 'Ange-ball' – as it came to be known at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium – is a possession-based system that is dependent on hassling opponents with high pressing, inverted full-backs creating overloads in midfield and the defence holding a very high line, with an uncompromising emphasis on all-out attack.
The Australian was often called out for being far too gung-ho and increasingly self-destructive in his approach during his time at Spurs, with his side found out on multiple occasions from the midway point of 2023-24 after a strong start where they seemed to have caught many of their rivals cold.
That gradual deterioration culminated in a humiliating 17th-placed finish in the league last season courtesy of some incredibly haphazard defensive displays, as Tottenham set the ignominious record for the most defeats without being relegated in a 38-game Premier League campaign (22). Notably, there were two losses to Forest among them, as the Midlands club secured one-goal victories home and away.
Something, then, has got to give as Postecoglou takes the reins at the City Ground. You could argue that he will have the players at his disposal to implement his ideas once again, with Morgan Gibbs-White, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Elliot Anderson and more probably well suited to his system, but Nuno has already drawn up a blueprint that really works – his successor will be taking a huge risk if he decides to rip it up and start again.
AdvertisementGetty Images SportFitness woes
A crippling injury crisis provided the backdrop to Tottenham's nightmarish 2024-25 league season, and Postecoglou regularly attributed blame to their lengthy list of absentees as his side struggled to compete domestically. However, many of the coach's detractors pointed to his demanding methods as the root cause of the raft of muscular issues, and there will be concerns of a repeat on the banks of the Trent.
As reported by in January in the depths of the crisis, when Spurs had no fewer than 11 names unavailable, there was "no time for respite" in the 60-year-old's high-intensity training sessions, with the same vigour expected on the training ground as it is on the pitch on matchday with the aim of overpowering and outrunning the opposition. Indeed, injuries are supposedly even deemed par for the course as players adapt to the Australian's modus operandi.
Notably, the north Londoners' head of medicine and sport science, Geoff Scott, left his role at the end of 2023-24 after a 20-year association with the club, purportedly after a fallout with Postecoglou over his handling of the first team's workload and the recovery of those who are injured. Key stars were often rushed back or even played through the pain barrier throughout his tenure.
Nuno had already questioned Forest's readiness and depth on the eve of the new season as they prepared to fight on four fronts rather than three, after qualifying for Europe for the first time in 30 years and being promoted to the Europa League at Crystal Palace's expense, insisting his squad was "very, very far from where we should be". Although further additions have since been made, the lack of quality alternatives was a big problem at Tottenham, and the incoming boss can't afford to run his best players into the ground again.
AFPRisk of revolt
The new head coach could well find himself at the centre of a hostile situation at the City Ground, where a new manager wasn't needed and his predecessor was hugely popular having guided the club back into Europe for the first time in three decades. For many, Postecoglou wouldn't have been the first or even second choice to replace Nuno, either.
When it became clear that the Portuguese's position had become untenable amid the souring of his relationship with owner Marinakis and global head of football Edu, the likes of Mourinho, Marco Silva, Oliver Glasner, Andoni Iraola and Mauricio Pochettino were linked with the role – all of whom would arguably be more appealing to the Garibaldi faithful, albeit the latter four are currently in work and therefore would be difficult extract.
"Postecoglou is about as far removed from the Steve Cooper and Nuno school of football as it is possible to get," GOAL writer and Forest fan Chris Burton says. "Jose Mourinho, for all of the obvious questions that he poses, would have been a better fit for a counter-attacking model that leans heavily on defensive stability. If Postecoglou goes full Ruben Amorim-mode and refuses to change his ways, then he will find out that the tide can turn quickly on Trentside."
It would be difficult to dispel the buoyant mood around the club after an exceptional 2024-25 campaign, but Postecoglou will still have some work to do to get the fans fully onside. Despite his ultimate downfall, that was something he succeeded in doing in north London amid initial scepticism over his appointment, as the ex-Celtic boss fostered an us-against-them mentality.
Getty Images SportEuropean pedigree
It's pretty clear that Postecoglou has been hired by virtue of his unlikely Europa League triumph last season, as he dragged his beleaguered Tottenham side to a predictably ugly victory over fellow Premier League strugglers Manchester United in Bilbao in May to end an agonising 17-year trophy drought, a success that belied Spurs' embarrassing league position.
In that moment, the Australian had rather bewilderingly maintained his status as a manager who has more or less guaranteed silverware throughout his storied career, even managing to stay true to his word after bullishly claiming that "I always wins things in my second year" in a now-famous post-match interview eight months prior. However, it wasn't enough to save his job.
As Forest prepare to embark on their own Europa League journey following their promotion from the Conference League, it's feasible that Marinakis believes a repeat is possible as he looks to follow Spurs through the backdoor into the promised land of the Champions League. He will believe they have the squad to compete in Europe.
The Forest owner actually presented Postecoglou with an award at a Greek Super League event in July for his achievement, saying at the time (as quoted by : "What he achieved, he did with a team that has not won any titles, it has had a very difficult time in recent years. Wherever he goes, the successes will come."