Nottingham Forest sacks head coach Vitor Pereira after Europa League semi-final run; Oliver Glasner expected to take over

Surprise departure

On Thursday, Nottingham Forest confirmed that Vitor Pereira had left his role as head coach after the club exercised a mutual break clause in his contract. The decision came as a shock to the 57-year-old Portuguese, who had only been appointed in February. Pereira revealed he was informed of the termination via email on Tuesday night, with a face-to-face meeting the following morning. The break clause reportedly allowed either party to terminate the agreement by 30 June.

Pereira's short but impactful tenure

Pereira was Forest's fourth manager of a chaotic season, following Nuno Espírito Santo, Ange Postecoglou and Sean Dyche. In just over three months, he steered the club to a 16th-place finish, securing Premier League safety, and guided them to the Europa League semi-finals, eliminating FC Porto in the quarter-finals. His record across 20 matches stood at eight wins, six draws and six defeats.

Glasner set to take over

British media reports indicate that Oliver Glasner is the frontrunner to replace Pereira. The Austrian left Crystal Palace this summer after winning the Conference League title, a year after lifting the FA Cup. Forest have not yet made an official announcement on the appointment.

Reaction and gratitude

Pereira issued a statement on Wednesday expressing his disappointment.

“Although this decision came as a complete surprise to me and without any warning, I fully respect the club's right to make the decisions it believes are best for its future. Naturally, I am disappointed and saddened. I truly believed in what we were building together, and I leave with a sense of pride in everything we achieved over the past months.”

The club thanked Pereira and his staff, who also departed, for their "considerable efforts" and the "foundations upon which we will continue to build".

“They represented Forest with enormous dedication, helping to secure the club's status in the Premier League, guiding the squad to the semi-finals of the UEFA Europa League, and providing us with the foundations upon which we will continue to build.”