Greek shipowner Evangelos Marinakis must be wondering what it takes to get a football team promoted to England’s top-tier Premier League.
When he bought Nottingham Forest in May 2017, there was talk of “bringing back the glory days”.
The club famously won back-to-back European Championships just over 40 years ago under the guidance of the legendary managerial partnership of Brian Clough and Peter Taylor.
But last week, Marinakis sacked his fourth manager. He lasted less time than it takes to build a VLCC.
Forest failed to win any of their last 10 league games under Frenchman Sabri Lamouchi, collapsing spectacularly at the end of last season.
Their most recent game saw the club miss out on a potentially lucrative play-off position after suffering a 4-1 home defeat by Stoke, which, coupled with Swansea's 4-1 win at Reading, saw Forest finish outside the top six on goal difference.
Confirmation of the departure of the latest manager was short and sweet.
End of season collapse
“Nottingham Forest can confirm that the contract of head coach Sabri Lamouchi has been terminated with immediate effect,” a single-line statement read.
Lamouchi, a former international for France, was appointed by Nottingham Forest in June 2019 as a replacement for former Nottingham Forest player Martin O’Neill and was let go just four months after signing a new two-year contract.
While Lamouchi had no previous experience in English football prior to joining the club, his replacement, Chris Hughton, comes with a proven track record.
The former Tottenham Hotspur and Republic of Ireland defender won promotion to the Premier League as a manager with Newcastle United in 2010 and Brighton & Hove Albion in 2017.
Forest said Hughton has “managed close to 450 first-team games” with a “win percentage of over 40%”.
Hughton is the 11th full-time managerial appointment by Forest in less than five years.
After a poor start to the season, his first task will be to get the team up and running in the Championship, England’s second division. Forest have lost the first four games of the season and currently sit in the relegation zone.
