Nuno Espirito Santo has officially been axed at Nottingham Forest. It’s time for a new era at the City Ground.
Despite picking up 30 wins in charge of the Tricky Trees, with Europa League football also on the menu this season, the ex-Wolverhampton Wanderers boss’ fiery relationship with chairman Evangelos Marinakis and Edu has ultimately been his downfall.
Forest have moved swiftly to secure an immediate successor to Nuno, with the Premier League side having announced Ange Postecoglou as their new boss on Tuesday afternoon.
He, of course, guided Spurs to a Europa League triumph just last campaign and is seen as the man to take the Midlanders to the next level.
Known for an exciting brand of attacking football while situated in North London, he could well be a breath of fresh air away from Nuno’s more attritional approach.
That means Morgan Gibbs-White could thrive even more under the Australians’ new methods.
Why Gibbs-White could thrive under Ange
Postecoglou will walk into the dug-out at the City Ground pretty content with the attacking options at his disposal.
Of course, he will have the imposing goal machine of Chris Wood to rely on – who has two Premier League strikes already this season – alongside knowing he also has an enthralling playmaker setting him up with chances galore in the aforementioned Gibbs-White.
Staggeringly, it wasn’t too far back that Forest fans were resigned to the prospect of their star man defecting to Postecoglou’s ex-employers.
Now, however, he could be the 60-year-old’s leading attacking force alongside Wood, with a bumper 15 goal contributions last season from 34 Premier League clashes setting the very high standards.
After all, Postecoglou, when back at Spurs during his up-and-down stint, got the very best out of similarly skilful, but potent presences in attack, as seen in him overseeing Maddison picking up a whirlwind 23 goals and assists last campaign.
The former Celtic boss would even herald Maddison as “loveable little rogue” during their time together at the Lilywhites.
Therefore, you might well expect Gibbs-White’s numbers to rise to these lofty heights shortly.
However, the soon-to-be new Tricky Trees manager might well see even more promise in a rising star at Forest as his next potential Maddison-style project.
Ange's new Maddison at Nottingham Forest
Despite Nuno falling out with Marinakis regularly at the City Ground, it’s fair to say the now jobless 51-year-old was backed in the summer transfer window, before parting ways dramatically.
Indeed, the likes of Dilane Bakwa would join on deadline day for a whopping £35m to bolster the options available on the right wing, on top of plenty of exciting English talent also entering the building in the form of record signing Omari Hutchinson and James McAtee.
In particular, the brand-new Forest number 24 might well have caught the eye of the incoming manager, with McAtee once being noted as being a “special” talent by his former Manchester City boss, Pep Guardiola, before severing ties with his boyhood side to join Forest.
More first-team opportunities should come the ex-Sheffield United loanee’s way at the City Ground, with a hope on Postecoglou’s end that he can get even more out of another entertaining and captivating number ten who was previously seen as the next best thing, like he did so effortlessly with Maddison at Spurs.
Games played
75
200
Goals scored
16
67
Assists
21
37
Trophies
1x
9x
After all, much like his fellow compatriot who scored and assisted a bumper 96 times for Leicester City, McAtee has shown off his class for the Citizens at both a senior and youth level, as well as starring out on loan at the Blades, with a mammoth 67 goals and 37 assists to shout about for his fledgling career to date.
With Postecoglou managing to extract 16 goals and 21 assists from Maddison in North London, it remains to be seen what magic the Australian can now conjure up with yet another thrilling attacking midfielder.
The up-and-coming 22-year-old will likely have to fight it out with Gibbs-White for a starting spot under Postecoglou.
But, if he can shine when thrown into the action, it could well be that McAtee goes on to be the former Spurs manager’s second coming of Maddison, as he embarks on a daunting new adventure himself in a fresh Premier League dug-out.