According to a source, Nottingham Forest have started preliminary conversations about hiring a manager with La Liga and international experience after making a U-turn on Steve Cooper’s future.
Between January 1 and February 5, Forest had some good Premier League results. They began the new year by drawing 1-1 with Chelsea before going on to win league games against Southampton and Leicester.
On February 5, the east Midlands side defeated Leeds 1-0, with Brennan Johnson scoring the only goal. However, that was the last time Forest won a league game.
Cooper’s team has suffered six defeats and three draws since the Leeds victory over two months ago.
As a result, Forest has dropped to 18th place in the table. It is still an extremely tight relegation battle, with teams as high as 13th still in danger. There is now genuine anxiety around the City Ground that Forest may be relegated during their first season back in the Premier League.
Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis has backed Cooper this season after all he achieved to get the club promoted last season.
Marinakis even issued a statement last week to publicly support Cooper. The Greek media mogul affirmed Cooper’s retention as CEO in order to “end the speculation,” albeit he did state that results “must improve immediately.”
Despite Marinakis’ recent comments, the Daily Mail claims Forest is still looking for managers to replace Cooper if performances do not improve.
Nott’m Forest attempt to land veteran manager
And Forest are planning an ambitious move for veteran coach Jorge Sampaoli. The 63-year-old has vast experience, having managed European sides such as Sevilla and Marseille and been in charge of South American nations Argentina and Chile.
Sampaoli’s best accomplishment is winning the 2014-15 Copa America, which he won with Chile ahead of usual favourites Brazil and Argentina.
He was most recently in charge of La Liga outfit Sevilla but was sacked on March 20.
The Daily Mail claim Forest are hoping to lure Sampaoli to the Premier League for the first time. They believe he has the knowledge and expertise to drag them out of the bottom three.
Forest have even held preliminary discussions with the manager’s camp.
Despite this, Sampaoli would have to be persuaded to manage in England at this point in his career. It’s also unclear whether the Argentine knows enough English to perform successfully in the Premier League.
Forest’s interest in Sampaoli as a potential Cooper replacement came less than 24 hours after Marinakis fired sporting director Filippo Giraldi.
The manager joined the club in October and oversaw the January acquisitions of Danilo, Jonjo Shelvey, Gustavo Scarpa, Chris Wood, and Keylor Navas. Giraldi, on the other hand, has not done enough to convince the Forest administration and has thus left ‘amicably,’ according to the club.
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