Football
Exclusive: Linked With West Ham, Nuno Espirito Santo Keen to Jump Back Into Premier League Management
Former Nottingham Forest boss Nuno Espírito Santo, recently sacked, is eager for a new challenge. Despite his short tenure, he has been linked with taking over at West Ham. His priority is staying in the Premier League. His success at Forest last season led to a new deal, but he was sacked just three months later. Espírito Santo is an experienced manager with a successful track record.
Crystal Palace v Nottingham Forest - Premier League by NurPhoto | Getty Images
Nuno Espirito Santos is hungry to get back into management as soon as possible, SportsBoom can exclusively reveal.
The Portuguese coach was brutally sacked by former club Nottingham Forest after just three games of the new season.
And already the 51-year-old has already been linked with taking over at troubled West Ham if current manager Graham Potter is sent packing after a dismal start to the new Premier League season.
Former Tottenham Hotspur and Wolves manager Espirito Santo faced an uncertain fortnight after revealing to the media that his relationship with Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis had become strained.
And just six days ago Marinakis wielded the axe on Espirito Santos’ 21-month tenure at the City Ground.
Last season he guided the club to an impressive seventh-place finish in the top-flight as they qualified for Europe for the first time in three decades.
That success led to a new three-year deal which he penned in June of this year, but little over three months later he was out of the exit door.
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Our sources have learnt the experienced boss, who has taken charge of 184 Premier League matches, does not want to wait to get back into management, and his priority is staying in the Premier League.
Espirito Santo left Forest with an underwhelming 38.36 win percentage throughout his time at the City Gound, but it was excellent results and progress last season which deservedly won him many plaudits, especially Forest’s return to European football.
At Wolves he ended with a 47.74% win percentage with 95 wins and 49 draw from his 199 matches in charge, while at Spurs finished with a 47.06% win percentage during his short tenure.
He took over at Forest in December 2023 after an impressive spell in charge of Saudi Pro League side Al-Ittihad, with whom he guided to the club’s first league title for 14 years with 36 wins and 12 draws from his 56 matches in charge.
As a player Espirito Santo won four Portuguese Primeira Liga titles and in management took Wolves up to the Premier League in the 2017-18 season, as well as winning the Saudi Pro League and Saudi Super Cup crowns in his time with Al-Ittihad.
Neil has been a journalist for longer than he'd care to remember, having written for national newspapers and respected publications for over 25 years. For the last three years he has worked freelance for BBC Sport, working on the production desk as a sub-editor and also as a writer, covering a whole range of sports.