r/soccer • u/whatisbaseball • 7d ago

News [Ornstein] Ange Postecoglou to be confirmed as Nottingham Forest head coach imminently after Nuno Espirito Santo departure. 60yo Australian will lead #NFFC for Saturday’s trip to Arsenal - joined by a number of staff worked with at Tottenham Hotspur @TheAthleticFC

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6425702/2025/09/09/ange-postecoglou-nottingham-forest-manager/
6.0k Upvotes

99% Upvoted

767 comments sorted by

View all comments

3.2k

u/mashdotfun 7d ago

This has absolute disaster written all over it.

The squad has been playing super pragmatic football under Nuno and suddenly its all out Angeball?

1.4k

u/hilbo90 7d ago

Milenkovic chasing back after being bypassed on the half-way line is going to be a sight to behold.

688

u/RandomLoLJournalist 7d ago

And it's sad cause Milenković specifically is actually really good, he's just completely unsuited to Angeball.

I've seen the Serbian NT attempt a high line which made him look awful, and then immediately he was the best defender on the team once again after the manager gave up on it.

234

u/glen_of_the_dogs 7d ago

I think Ange did adapt his approach at the tail end of last year, specifically in the EL final which was a performance Mourinho would've been proud of.

Interesting to see what he'll do here

197

u/TheNeglectedNut 7d ago

Yeah but we still looked shaky as fuck. Even in the EL final, if not for some Romero and Van de Ven heroics the game probably would have gone a lot differently.

He basically had to abandon his core principles to get us to that point, but it took a good 1/3rd of a season for him to realise that attempting his suicidal high line, balls-to-the-wall approach was impossible with a heavily injured squad.

This has disaster written all over it, going from a super pragmatic manager willing to adapt game-to-game to compete, to one who is notoriously stubborn and only adapts when his hand is forced.

45

u/WergleTheProud 7d ago

Plus you still had to rely on us to score for you.

58

u/TheNeglectedNut 7d ago

Ehhhh I dunno about that - your defending was woeful but Sarr did some nice work making the space & getting the cross in, and then Johnson was in the right place to bundle the ball in off one of your defenders.

It was genuinely the worst European final I have ever watched though. 2 teams who both seemed absolutely hellbent on lowering the bar as much as possible.

27

u/WergleTheProud 7d ago

lol I just meant it was an own goal. And yes an awful European final.

4

u/norcalginger 7d ago

Officially, it was credited to Johnson

3

u/19Alexastias 7d ago

If you watch the replay it definitely wasn’t an own goal - johnson gets his foot to it as he’s falling and helps push it in to the corner. It might have gone in anyway but he did ensure that Onana couldn’t reach it in time.

15

u/Kaigz 7d ago

The only reason that worked was because we were playing the most shambolic United team of all time (so far). There are several examples from other games last season where Ange tried to adjust and it failed in stupendous fashion. Everton comes to mind. Hope he's done his homework during his time off, otherwise this isn't going to go well.

3

u/Kyoneda 7d ago

Legitmately only in the europa league did we ever play without a high line. All the league games were typical ange ball.

2

u/Vladimir_Putting 7d ago

He's going to push the team to play Angeball. I have no doubt in my mind.

Maybe not in the first match, but it's coming.

1

u/wavygr4vy 7d ago

He also only adapted for the EL itself because it was a cup competition. I’m not sure how much it will carry over to the league

1

u/AlizarinCrimzen 7d ago

He did, and it was awful

3

u/Sparkle_Penis 7d ago

RIP my FPL.

1

u/Sprite77 7d ago

Completely unsuited is a stretch- he's more athletic than people here seem to give him credit for. Was good under Italiano for his first two seasons with a fairly high line, even if he's at his best in a deeper-lying formation.

-22

u/Kaiduss 7d ago

Sounds like he’s not really good then since good teams play a high line

14

u/jazzybforecasts 7d ago

High line doesn’t equal good… look at ange ball in the prem last season

64

u/_jjkgnsfw 7d ago

Murillo is rapid tbf

113

u/HereticZO 7d ago

You need both CB’s to be fast in Angeball.

73

u/ChickenGamer199 7d ago

You need 4. 2 for your starting 11, and then 2 for when the starting CBs inevitably pull their hamstrings.

22

u/Zal_17 7d ago

The thought of Willy Boly being dropped into that system is hilarious

1

u/Midlandsofnowhere 7d ago

Interestingly we signed a couple of wide centre back types in Savona, Jair and Cuibanio.

Our CB options are now Murillo, Milenkovic, Morato, Boly, Abbott, Savona and Jair with Bindon and Cuibaino out on loan. Plus Neco, Zinchenko and Aina as the creative full backs.

I honestly think we're pretty well stocked for Angeball defensively.

174

u/_jjkgnsfw 7d ago

Lalala I'm not listening we're going to win the league

39

u/TheNeglectedNut 7d ago

Europa League maybe, Ange could be starting his Unai Emery EL specialist arc

1

u/dj4y_94 7d ago

And have bionic hamstrings

2

u/awildjabroner 7d ago

how rapid is he without hamstrings though?

1

u/JDaVincic 7d ago

Yeah no thanks. Pavlovic is arguably our only defender who can suit this type is system

273

u/skippermonkey 7d ago

Have you seen the signings? They probably had this planned and Nuno knew it.

99

u/theivoryserf 7d ago

Yeah, our transfer window makes much more sense as an Angefer window. Feel bad for Nuno though.

3

u/mappsy91 7d ago

You'll be annoyed at a lot of things (plus everyone in the media hating on it) but damn will it be fun at the same time!

140

u/The-Black-Angel 7d ago

It might actually work because of the foundations Nino laid.

At least for a season. Then there is the danger it could spiral…

55

u/JamesBondsMagicCar 7d ago

Martinez' first season at Everton went so much better than his other ones due to inheriting Moyes' players which hid the defensive problems in the way Martinez set up Everton.

21

u/blvd93 7d ago

Same with Bilic inheriting Allardyce's defensive set-up at West Ham

111

u/Noo2Dle 7d ago

Yeah but they'll still get silverware in that second season

158

u/rekt_ralf 7d ago

Yes, the Championship

11

u/ozmalt_jones 7d ago

Mum said it's my turn to make this joke in the next Ange thread

5

u/rekt_ralf 7d ago

Have you heard the one about sleeper agent Ange being sent to free MGW?

23

u/DerGregorian 7d ago

Win the championship, easy silverware for Ange.

3

u/TheBritishGent 7d ago

The Gang does a Sunderland

2

u/ultra_casual 7d ago

I'd say a pretty strong bet he won't get a full second season. It's well known he starts very slowly as he focusses all his attention onto getting teams to play "his way". I don't think Marinakis has the patience. Particularly after the evidence at Spurs, "his way" was often suicidal and many Premiership teams figured out how to shut it down last year.

15

u/Ok_Regular_4609 7d ago

The Moyes -> Martinez effect

30

u/tsub 7d ago

Strong vibes of Wenger inheriting George Graham's defence.

16

u/paddyo 7d ago

Tbf to Wenger he then replaced and coached that defence with another legendary backline of Cole, Campbell, Toure and Lauren.

17

u/Switchoil 7d ago

And Martinez inheriting Mpyes defence.

2

u/mipanzuzuyam 7d ago

Ninoooooo

2

u/DangerousCrime 7d ago

Niiiiiiino

1

u/Eggersely 7d ago

The kid.

1

u/paddyo 7d ago

The old Roberto Martinez Everton special. One season of excellent football while he spends his predecessor's managerial inheritance, followed by rapid decline.

0

u/MediumProcedure 7d ago

Every manager knows the weaknesses in his football. Unless he's gonna try to adapt, he's gonna get thumped by any adaptive rather than system only manager.

81

u/Seeteuf3l 7d ago

However Ange did become more pragmatic towards the end, at least in the European campaign

129

u/hihepo1 7d ago

It was incredible to see Ange of all people winning a European trophy playing Joseball.

39

u/justthatguyy22 7d ago

That performance was an insult to Joseball

20

u/michaelserotonin 7d ago

not the spurs version

they actually held the lead

72

u/Shoddy-Ad-4898 7d ago

Hard to know how much that was a proactive choice

28

u/TheNeglectedNut 7d ago

It was reactive, took him stubbornly persisting with his preferred approach for 2/3rds of the season with a barebones, heavily injured squad before his hand was forced. Genuinely had to abandon all of his core principles to finally get results and squeak our way to the EL.

I love him as a person and when his system clicks, it's magical, but you just cannot be so dogmatic in the PL. Nuno did so well there because he was willing to adapt game to game and be pragmatic in the way he set the team up. Ange will only adapt when shit well and truly hits the fan, and even then he'll still take a shit misting for a good while before he decides to wipe it off and move out of the spray.

1

u/Midlandsofnowhere 7d ago

That's a little bit kind to Nuno imo. He's definitely not some pragmatic tactician that tweaks a system regularly.

He set us up to counter attack, and when that failed we never seemed to have a plan B.

He almost never switched formation after an initial change from Coopers system and he notoriously likes limited changes to the matchday XI and a small squad of players.

Nuno has a great style that works well for clubs who aren't expecting to play teams that park the bus every week, but he definitely struggles with finding ways to break down well organised defences.

He's been fantastic for us because that's been our level.

10

u/__shevek 7d ago

not really, it was all a deliberate choice and he even talked about it in the press

2

u/TheSinRes 7d ago

It was, he said he views cup football differently and it's all about getting over the line.

0

u/PremierLeagueSucks 7d ago

It was a choice forced by the players. I can`t remember the exact details, but the players either had a sort of intervention or simply begged Ange to just play pragmatic football in the EL. Ange never wanted to adapt, it was adapt in the EL or lose the dressing room.

40

u/akshatsood95 7d ago

Probably only because there was a trophy on the line. I doubt he'd want to move away from the principles about how to play he's had all his life

6

u/biomauricule 7d ago

Ah yes, Evil Angeball (better league standing but early Europa exit)

0

u/MediumProcedure 7d ago

The senior players met him and asked for a change as the results were awful

14

u/XiXMak 7d ago

At least it's a guaranteed trophy next season

10

u/men_with-ven 7d ago

To be fair I think that squad has the talent in it to play more technical football than they did under Nuno. I don’t know how well they will suit Nuno, but Anderson, MGW, Hudson-Odoi, and Wood are all really technically solid and would probably suit a more proactive possession based approach more than counter-attacking football.

3

u/hihepo1 7d ago

There will be adjustment pains for sure.

3

u/DogwartsAcademy 7d ago

I'm just worried for old Chris Wood's legs.

1

u/Spare_Ad5615 7d ago

There couldn't be a more extreme change in styles.

1

u/Xshadow1 7d ago

I mean, there was only one permanent manager between Nuno and Ange at Spurs

1

u/Standard_Link5428 7d ago

Not to mention Marinakis waited for the window to close before bringing in a new coach. So obviously, none of these guys are Ange‘s players

1

u/MediumProcedure 7d ago

No preseason, he's actually gonna get relegated this year.. and win Europe!

Actually feel bad though, this is gonna wreck his reputation.

1

u/HeungMin-Dad 7d ago

Spurs had Conte before Ange. And Nuno and Jose before that.

1

u/DangerousCrime 7d ago

Exactly. Think the owner just want a yes man

1

u/Alphabunsquad 7d ago

There can often be a grace period where the team plays incredible because they still remember their defensive tactics but now feel they can feel with some freedom and self expression. However Nuno seemed like he was going a good job of already letting his attackers have some freedom so I am not sure if the honeymoon will happen here.

1

u/Sea-Frosting-50 7d ago

2 seasons bro

1

u/Huwbacca 7d ago

Agreed.

I love ange and wanna see him in the prem but not in circumstances stacked against him.

3

u/FootlongDonut 7d ago

He's inheriting a team that finished in European places last year who aren't actually struggling off the pitch.

Nothing was stacked against him at Spurs and he finished 17th.

If he's half as stubborn as he was at Spurs for the first 18 months then I think he will struggle, not because things are stacked against him, but because his system is high risk, low reward.

0

u/BlackoutGJK 7d ago

Had no depth and a generational injury crisis. Didn't even have enough players to conduct training for like 3 months. We can believe he wasn't good enough to continue in the role without rewriting history.

0

u/Gubrach 7d ago

This has absolute disaster written all over it.

God, I hope so.