Sean Dyche sacked with Nottingham Forest fearing drop as Vitor Pereira is linked

Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis made Sean Dyche his third managerial sacking of the season in a desperate bid to avoid relegation.

Dyche was fired in the early hours of Thursday morning after his side were held to a goalless draw with Wolves at the City Ground which moved them three points clear of the bottom three.

Former Wolves boss Vitor Pereira is understood to be under consideration to become the fourth manager of the campaign.

Forest had 35 shots on goal but could not find a way through against the basement club and the home fans roundly booed Dyche at the full-time whistle.

Marinakis was at the game and, after holding counsel with other members of the club’s hierarchy and senior players, he sacked Dyche in a belief that would give his club the best chance of staying in the Premier League.

The 54-year-old was in charge for 114 days and follows Nuno Espirito Santo and Ange Postecoglou out of the door in a tumultuous season at the City Ground.

Dyche leaves on the back of a run of just two wins from the last 10 Premier League games, and taking two points from matches against Crystal Palace, Leeds and Wolves proved fatal.

The search for a fourth manager is under way with Forest understood to be considering all options, including the appointment of an interim.

Former Wolves boss Pereira appears to be the leading candidate to take over, having worked for Marinakis at Olympiacos while also saving the Molineux club from relegation last season.

The Portuguese is out of work following his sacking earlier in the season.

Forest do not play until next Thursday’s Europa League play-off round first leg away at Fenerbahce.

It was supposed to be a memorable season for Forest after Nuno guided them to their first European qualification in 20 years.

He signed a new three-year Reds deal in June 2025, but was sacked in September following a breakdown in his relationship with Marinakis and sporting director Edu.

Former Tottenham boss Postecoglou was swiftly brought in as the Portuguese’s replacement, but lasted only 40 days in the job with Marinakis wielding the axe again within minutes of a 3-0 defeat by Chelsea.

Dyche, who lives in Nottingham and was a trainee at the club, became the club’s third first-team boss of the season on October 21 and was joined in the dugout by former Forest heroes Ian Woan and Steve Stone.

They beat Porto in his first game in charge and looked to have turned a corner after a 3-0 win at Premier League champions Liverpool a month later.

But form has been inconsistent and there have been internal concerns since they lost to Sky Bet Championship side Wrexham in the FA Cup in January.

Forest said in a statement: “Nottingham Forest can confirm that Sean Dyche has been relieved of his duties as head coach.

“We would like to thank Sean and his staff for their efforts during their time at the club and we wish them the best of luck for the future.

“We will be making no further comment at this time.”

Published: 12/02/2026 by Radio NewsHub