The former Tottenham manager made a rash Premier League return, and it will probably be his last
T
he weirdest aspect of Ange Postecoglou’s 40-day reign at Nottingham Forest was how inevitable it all felt. The only shock was that he was sacked on Saturday, within minutes of a 3-0 home defeat to Chelsea, rather than a day or two later. But by then, it was obvious this ill-starred adventure had run its course; perhaps it was kinder to everybody to bring it to an end. Forest, certainly, had to act quickly if they are to make the most of their first European campaign in three decades.
But why was such an obviously terrible appointment made in the first place? What was it that made the Nottingham Forest owner, Evangelos Marinakis, ever think that Postecoglou was the right man to succeed Nuno Espírito Santo? They met in July at an event staged by the Greek league to celebrate Postecoglou winning the Europa League with Tottenham, but was it really just that? That they got on well over a glass of wine?
Forest exceeded all expectations last season by finishing seventh, but they did so by sitting deep and playing on the counter. It was simple and effective. It got the best out of the two central defenders, Murillo and Nikola Milenković; Morgan Gibbs-White reveled in the freedom given him by a deep-lying midfield platform; Chris Wood had the season of his life, benefiting from the service provided by the rapid wide forwards, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Anthony Elanga.
