Nottingham Forest sack Steve Cooper ahead of Manchester United clash
Nottingham Forest have sacked manager Steve Cooper less than two weeks before they host Manchester United at the City Ground.
Former Wolves and Tottenham head coach Nuno Espirito Santo is the favourite to take over, having flown back to the UK for talks earlier this week. The 49-year-old's most recent role saw him sacked by Al Ittihad in November after 16 months in Saudi Arabia.
Cooper had come under increasing pressure at Forest after winning just one of his last 13 games. Four defeats on the bounce, including a 5-0 thrashing at Fulham, left him on the verge of losing his job but a hard-fought 1-1 draw at Wolves proved a stay of execution.
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Forest lost 2-0 at home to Tottenham Hotspur on Friday and while that result in isolation did not seal Cooper's fate, it added to the growing unease felt by owner Evangelos Marinakis, who has invested huge amounts of money on 44 new signings since promotion to the Premier League in 2022.
Cooper took charge of Forest in September 2021 when they were bottom of the Championship. The 44-year-old then led them to promotion that same season, ending a 23-year spell outside of England's top-flight.
Forest welcome United to the City Ground on Saturday, December 30, following games against Bournemouth and Newcastle either side of Christmas. Erik ten Hag's side face West Ham and Aston Villa before heading to the banks of the River Trent.
While they are not Forest's first opponent under a new manager, United have made a habit of meeting teams undergoing change in the dugout. Their first Premier League game of the campaign saw them host Wolves in Gary O'Neil's first game
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