Ange Postecoglou planning return to management after revealing 'brutal' nature of Nottingham Forest sacking - 'I was going to do something I regret'
Published 26/03/2026 at 10:06 GMT
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It took just 17 minutes after the full-time whistle on October 18, 2025 for Evangelos Marinakis to decide to sack his second manager of the season, with a 3-0 Premier League defeat to Chelsea proving to be Ange Postecoglou's last match in charge of Nottingham Forest. The Australian coach has revealed exactly what happened in the immediate aftermath of that fateful match at the City Ground.
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Ange Postecoglou has spoken out about his ”brutal” sacking from Nottingham Forest, which happened just minutes after losing at home to Chelsea in October 2025.
A breakdown in relations with owner Evangelos Marinakis had seen the previous manager, Nuno Espirito Santo, lose his job just three matches into the new season - paving the way for Postecoglou to take over at the City Ground.
However, just 39 days - and eight matches - later, it was the Australian’s turn to be fired by Marinakis, and it was done in the most cut-throat fashion.
After failing to win any of his first seven matches in charge, Postecoglou was already under pressure when Chelsea arrived for their Premier League clash, and a 3-0 defeat to the Londoners saw his reign come to a swift end - reportedly just 17 minutes after the full-time whistle.
"I haven't told the story, but it was brutal, mate. I literally got sacked straight after the game," Postecoglou told Australian radio station SEN 1116.
"I knew it was coming, so it was one of those that could come any day now, but they literally sacked me straight after the game.
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"I hadn't done the press yet but the press already knew. I just wanted to leave because I was going to do something I regret.
"I hadn't spoken to the assistant coaches who I knew also were probably going to be sacked, so I needed to say something to them, and I'm doing this walking through throes of press and people who are just all looking at me, and I just wanted to get out of there.
"Security said to me, 'Ange, how do you want to get out of here? You know [with] Premier League games, all the roads are blocked for half an hour.'
"And then after half an hour they said 'Ange, the roads have opened, but there's obviously traffic out there,' and they did their best to try and get me through.
"I got stuck at one set of traffic lights for at least 15 minutes. I've got Chelsea supporters giving it to me, Forest supporters weren't much kinder.
"I'm sitting in the car laid back and in between I got little kids coming up asking for a selfie, so what do you do? I don't want to disappoint. So I paid for my penance. Whatever mistake I made, I paid a pretty heavy price for it."
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As Nuno found before him, and Sean Dyche after him, Marinakis is not an owner who affords his managers time to develop their ideas - with current boss Vitor Pereira their fourth of the season.
It is a season which could yet end in a drop to the Championship, but a 3-0 win at relegation rivals Tottenham Hotspur has given them a boost, leaving Forest three points above the drop zone.
As for Postecoglou, he is ready to jump back into management and is keen for more success in Europe, but he wants the time and space to implement his style at his next club.
”I’ve figured out that for me to do what I do, the start of pre-season is a good starting point," he added.
"Jumping in mid-season - especially in the Premier League but in most leagues - is just probably too much of a challenge for the way I do things. That’s what I’m holding out for.
"Where that is and what it looks like is hard to say at the moment, but I haven’t even scratched the surface of what I want to do over here yet and the impact I want to make, the football I want to play."
Postecoglou backed up his claim that he always wins trophies in his second season at a club by delivering the UEFA Europa League title during his final days as Spurs boss, and he is ready to do it again.
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"I want to win things still," he said. "I still have that drive and passion to achieve - that hasn’t changed. The fact now it’s the first time I’m coming off a bad experience, that’s just more fuel for me.
"Wherever I go in, there will be plenty of scepticism - that’s brilliant, that’s what I need. Get the gloves, put the helmet on again and go really hard."
Postecoglou has used his time away from the game to formulate a plan for his next move.
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"I’ve got an idea, and I think part of it is going to be making sure that the people I work with are ready for what I’m going to deliver, and that they understand me as a person and the kind of football [I play], and I see the ambition in them," he explained.
"I know whatever it is going to be, I have this thing in my head that this will be the best one I’ve done yet because the recent experiences, maybe I needed them.
"You can’t always be flying high and successful. Sometimes you need to cop a couple of whacks. I still feel like what I do still has an impact at this level. I’m not done yet, mate! There’s still a bit to do."
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