Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo raised eyebrows after speaking out about a change in his relationship with the club’s owner Evangelos Marinakis on Friday
A rift between Nuno Espirito Santo and Edu is said to be behind the unrest at Nottingham Forest which came to light following comments the former made about his relationship with the club’s owner, Evangelos Marinakis.
Forest enjoyed a stellar 2024-25 campaign under Nuno, who led them to European qualification. But speculation that the Portuguese coach could be dismissed owing to a breakdown in his relationship with Marinakis was rife on Friday.
Nuno would then stoke the flames in an explosive press conference on Friday afternoon, saying: “Look, I have always had a very good relationship with the owner. Last season, we were very, very, very close, almost [talking] on a daily basis.
“This season, not so well. But I always believe that dialogue and what you say or your opinions are always valid because my concern is the squad and the season that we have ahead of us. But our relationship has changed. It’s not so close. It’s not on a daily basis. It’s not good. I think everybody at the club should be together but it’s not the reality.”
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When he was asked specifically about the reports from overseas claiming he could lose his job, Nuno replied: “Where there’s smoke, there’s fire, so I know how things work, but I’m here to do my job.”
The Athletic have shed further light on the situation, with a new report outlining that Nuno and Edu, the club’s new global head of football, have had a ‘spectacular fallout’ since the Brazilian’s arrival at the club.
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It’s said that the duo got off on the wrong foot and, alarmingly, that their relationship may be beyond repair, with Nuno making no attempt to hide his feelings on Edu to the former Arsenal chief himself and others at the club.
Marinakis is understood to be in the middle, though the report adds that he has effectively ‘sided’ with Edu. It remains to be seen if he wield the axe on Nuno, who is set to take Nottingham Forest to Crystal Palace in their next Premier League fixture on Sunday afternoon.
The match is expected to be highly charged with Forest replacing Crystal Palace in the Europa League following an intervention from UEFA.
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