Steve Cooper is set to be sacked by Nottingham Forest but he might not be out of work for long. The head coach is set to be handed his p45 from the Reds in the coming days.
Forest have moved quickly to appoint a new head coach. Nuno Espirito Santo is the man who has been chosen to oversee a bit of a rebuild and he’s flying to England now.
Cooper is a burgeoning coach, however, and it would appear that he’s a wanted man. It was recently claimed that two Premier League clubs were keeping tabs on him and now one could make their move…
Premier League club want Steve Cooper
According to The Telegraph, Crystal Palace could move for Cooper once he’s been sacked by Forest. Steve Parish is a long-term admirer of his and Roy Hodgson has come under a bit of pressure.
The current Eagles manager did perhaps earn a stay of execution on Saturday. He oversaw a 2-2 draw with champions Manchester City and that could earn him more time.
The form of the South Londoners has been patchy at best, with defeats to Luton and Bournemouth in recent weeks.
After leading the Eagles to safety last season, he’s not really built on that and after defeat to Bournemouth he criticised the club’s supporters.
Cooper will definitely get himself a decent job and it’s not really a surprise that a Premier League club is keen to hand him an opportunity to get straight back in.
The reason Palace having been hanging on, rather than approaching Forest is all down to money. With Cooper set to be a free agent, the Eagles will now likely step up their interest.
Cooper deserves utmost respect from Forest supporters
The tale of the tape is impressive from Cooper’s perspective. He led Forest to promotion to the Premier League, a quarter-final in the FA Cup and a semi-final in the Carabao Cup.
He will leave having been in charge for 108 games, claiming 42 wins and 27 draws, with 39 of his games ending in defeats for Forest. His win percentage stands at 38%.
Ultimately, Palace would be taking a bit of a risk by appointing him. Although Cooper has a growing reputation as a coach, his record in the Premier League with Forest has been a little bit patchy, to say the least.
Still, he’s had a somewhat tough hand at Forest with injuries and a scattergun approach to transfers. Palace certainly don’t seem put off by Cooper’s form of late and they could now act.
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