‘Multiple options’ – Nuno Espirito Santo tipped for Premier League return after Nottingham Forest sack

Nuno Espirito Santo will not struggle to return to management despite being sacked by Nottingham Forest.

That’s the view of talkSPORT’s Danny Murphy, although Simon Jordan does not believe he will work at a top six Premier League side again.

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Espirito Santo was sacked by Forest on Tuesday after nearly two years as head coach at the City Ground in what was a successful stint.

He steered them from a relegation battle to Europe, but has now left and been replaced by Ange Postecoglou in the dugout.

Forest were the third Premier League club to be managed by the 51-year-old following his previous spells at Wolves and Tottenham.

Speaking on White and Jordan about Espirito Santo’s next steps in management, Murphy said: “I think he’ll have multiple options.

“He’s a very competent man who seems to conduct himself the right way, until very recently.

“But he’s a certain style of manager, and there’ll always be clubs who need someone to be able to organise and discipline, and create a team that’s very difficult to play against.

“I don’t see him struggling for work at all.”

Jordan agreed with Murphy, but then explained why he doesn’t think Espirito Santo will land a top-tier job in the Premier League.

“It’s an interesting dynamic, the style of club has got to be right for Nuno. Because when he went to Spurs it was completely wrong, that’s why he got binned early doors.

“He’s interesting, because he’s successful in what he does. I think he’s a difficult animal, I think he’s a political animal.

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“I don’t mean in terms of his leanings, but in terms of the way he plays Machiavellian games to get his outcomes, and I think that doesn’t sit very well.

“I think they ran out of patience with him at Wolves, but he produced a decent side that got them out of the Championship, did OK in the first couple of seasons in the Premier League.

“Did really well, produced a decent side because they had the flying winger [Adama] Traore, he was ripping people to pieces, and they had [Ruben] Neves and a few other people, the Portuguese connection because of Jorge Mendes [agent].

“But I think he’s a slightly difficult animal. Now, people will look at it and go… As a football operator, I don’t think there’s any doubt that Nuno Espirito Santo operates at a relatively high level, with a certain type of football club that’s prepared to play a certain type of way.

“But there is also the other side of him that I think will challenge people. So, where could he go next?

“Is he worthy of another Premier League job? Yeah, of course he’s worthy of another Premier League job, it just depends on the club.

“Is he a top six manager for one of the ‘Big Six’ clubs? I don’t think so. Not because I dislike him in any shape or form, I just don’t think he has that way about him to be a top six manager.

“Albeit, looking at the top six managers and what they’re supposed to be, like Ruben Amorim, who’s supposed to be managing a top six club, who knows what the model is these days.

“But I don’t see him managing a top six club. He had a tilt at Spurs, it just didn’t work and it’s not just Daniel Levy and Spurs, it’s he got binned really quick.”

Forest reaction to Espirito Santo’s exit

Callum Hudson-Odoi signed for Forest in September 2023, three months before Espirito Santo moved to the City Ground.

He scored 12 goals and assisted five others during his tenure, his best contribution tally with any coach at senior level.

Speaking exclusively to talkSPORT, Hudson-Odoi reflected on how Espirito Santo helped to improve his performances on the pitch.

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“With me and him, it was very close,” he explained: “We had a good bond and we spoke about everything in every situation, whether it was on the pitch or off the pitch.

“He was just trying to get to know me more and I was trying to understand him as well as a coach. I understand what his ideas were and everything like that. So we definitely had a good bond.

“For myself, it improved me a lot. It matured my game a lot and made me understand a lot more about the game and knowing what to do to try and be better in positions when we’re getting close to the goal and defending.

“He had a massive impact on me. I think that it was a sad day to see what happened, but at the end of the day, excited for the new chapter as well. I’m wishing nothing but the best for the future.”

Espirito Santo won 30 of his 71 matches across all competitions at Forest, with seventh last season being his highest league finish.

It saw the club qualify for Europe, with their last continental appearance coming in the quarter-finals of the 1995/96 UEFA Cup.

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Forest even had the chance to claim a Champions League spot, but a 1-0 defeat to Chelsea on the final day saw them miss out.

Conference League football was achieved, although they have instead been promoted to the Europa League.

This comes after FA Cup winners Crystal Palace were demoted from the competition due to a breach of UEFA multi-club ownership rules.

Forest will face Real Betis, Midtjylland, Porto, Sturm Graz, Malmo, Utrecht, Braga and Ferencvaros in this season’s Europa League.

But before then, the Postecoglou era will get underway at Saturday lunchtime when they travel to Arsenal, live on talkSPORT.