Nottingham Forest are on the verge of appointing Sean Dyche as their third manager of the season. The former Everton and Burnley boss is set to take over from Ange Postecoglou, who was dismissed less than 20 minutes after the final whistle of Saturday’s 3-0 hammering by Chelsea. Dyche’s arrival could be rubber-stamped later today (Monday).
Ex-Forest academy graduate Dyche surfaced as a contender for the City Ground position during the international break. At the time, owner Evangelos Marinakis was mulling over his choices as he deliberated whether to axe Postecoglou. An eighth match without victory at the weekend proved to be the last straw for Postecoglou. And now Dyche is poised to be unveiled as the 60-year-old’s successor.
Forest did weigh up alternative options. Fulham’s Marco Silva is rated by Marinakis but compensation would be necessary to secure him, and the Reds are conscious of staying within the financial regulations.
Discussions were also conducted with former Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini but an agreement was not reached between the Italian and Forest.
As a result, the route is now open for Dyche to assume control. According to Sky Sports, he has ‘verbally agreed’ to take over and final details are in the process of being sorted.
If everything goes according to plan, Dyche’s debut as manager will be Thursday night’s Europa League match at home against Porto. Following this, he’ll have a swift journey to the south coast to prepare for, with the club set to face Bournemouth on Sunday.
Postecoglou’s stint as Forest head coach was abruptly terminated after just 39 days. He took over from Nuno Espirito Santo on September 9 and was dismissed on Saturday afternoon.
The Reds haven’t tasted victory in any competition since the season’s first day, when Nuno was still at the helm for a 3-1 triumph over Brentford. They currently sit 18th in the Premier League table, having garnered a mere five points from their initial eight matches.
Dyche has been jobless since his departure from Everton in January. Former Reds Ian Woan and Steve Stone, who have long been part of his coaching team, are expected to join him at Trentside.
