Nottingham Forest’s turbulent Premier League campaign took another dramatic turn on Saturday, October 18, 2025, as the club announced the sacking of manager Ange Postecoglou just 39 days after his appointment. The decision came a mere 19 minutes after Forest’s 3-0 home defeat to Chelsea, marking one of the shortest and most tumultuous managerial reigns in Premier League history.
Forest’s statement was blunt and to the point: “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.” The news broke as the City Ground was still emptying, with fans reeling from another disappointing afternoon and club owner Evangelos Marinakis having already departed his seat well before the final whistle.
Postecoglou’s tenure, which began on September 9, 2025, after the abrupt departure of Nuno Espirito Santo, was winless in all competitions. The Australian coach—who just months earlier had guided Tottenham Hotspur to a Europa League triumph—could not muster a single victory in his eight matches at the helm. Forest’s record under his stewardship reads six defeats and two draws, with the club sliding into the Premier League’s bottom three following the latest setback.
The sense of resignation was palpable among Forest supporters as Chelsea’s third goal, a volley by captain Reece James, triggered a mass exodus from the City Ground with six minutes still to play. The home fans, who had shown vocal support in the first half, were left stunned and subdued as the away end reveled in chants of “sacked in the morning.” There were some boos and a smattering of frustration, but the anger that had flared during previous matches, notably the toxic atmosphere after the Europa League defeat to Midtjylland, was conspicuously absent. Instead, apathy and confusion seemed to take hold.
Forest’s first half had offered a glimmer of hope. Taiwo Awoniyi, making his first start since a serious abdominal injury, missed an early chance, while Morgan Gibbs-White squandered two presentable opportunities. The midfield trio of Ibrahim Sangare, Elliot Anderson, and Douglas Luiz appeared to give Forest the upper hand, but their inability to capitalize would prove costly. As Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca later observed, “Unfortunately, it’s a business where you need to win games. Otherwise, for all of us, it’s the same consequences.”
Chelsea, missing key players Cole Palmer and Enzo Fernandez, struggled in the opening period but found their rhythm after the break. Three half-time substitutions, including the introduction of Moises Caicedo, shifted the momentum. Within six minutes of the restart, 19-year-old defender Josh Acheampong headed home Pedro Neto’s cross, and Neto himself curled in a free-kick to double the lead. The quickfire double stunned Forest and their fans, and when James volleyed in Chelsea’s third after a poor clearance by Matz Sels, any remaining hope of a comeback evaporated.
Postecoglou’s response was immediate—he brought on Callum Hudson-Odoi in an attempt to change the game—but it was too little, too late. Substitute Igor Jesus came closest for Forest, hitting both the post and the bar with a single shot, summing up the team’s luckless afternoon. Defender Neco Williams volleyed over when unmarked, and the sense that this simply wasn’t Forest’s day was hard to escape.
Forest’s struggles were not confined to this match. Under Postecoglou, the club earned just one point from five league games, scoring only in a 1-1 draw at Burnley. The team’s defensive frailties were exposed repeatedly, with no clean sheets and a lack of cohesion among a squad assembled at significant expense over the summer. Fans were left questioning both the selection choices—such as starting Awoniyi after a long layoff and leaving out big-money signings James McAtee, Dilane Bakwa, Arnaud Kalimuendo, and Omari Hutchinson—and the manager’s approach to media duties, which often focused more on his past achievements than the club’s immediate needs.
Postecoglou’s departure marks the second time in four months he has been dismissed from a Premier League post. Despite leading Tottenham Hotspur to a historic Europa League win on May 22, 2025, he was sacked by Spurs just two weeks later after a dismal league finish in 17th place. His brief and ill-fated stint at Forest now stands as the second shortest in Premier League history, behind only Sam Allardyce’s 30-day tenure at Leeds United in 2023. Les Reed’s 40 days at Charlton in 2006 now rank third.
The rapid managerial turnover at Forest has left the club searching for its third head coach of the season. Nuno Espirito Santo, who had guided Forest back into European competition for the first time in three decades, was dismissed after just three games amid reports of a breakdown in his relationship with the club’s hierarchy. Postecoglou was brought in on a two-year deal with the expectation of delivering an attacking brand of football, but the results never materialized.
Speculation is already swirling about the next appointment, with former Burnley and Everton boss Sean Dyche reportedly under consideration. Whoever takes the reins faces a daunting task: reviving a squad short on confidence, mired in the relegation zone, and desperate for stability after a chaotic start to the campaign.
For Forest fans, the overriding emotion is one of disbelief and disappointment. The optimism that followed a busy transfer window and European qualification has evaporated, replaced by a sense of déjà vu and concern that the club’s hard-won Premier League status is once again under threat. As one supporter was heard to lament, “How did all of this fall apart so quickly?”
As the dust settles on another chaotic chapter in Nottingham Forest’s recent history, the focus shifts to the future. The squad remains, and the next match looms large on the horizon. But for Ange Postecoglou, the story at the City Ground has ended almost as abruptly as it began. Forest, meanwhile, must regroup and find a way forward—before the season slips even further from their grasp.
