Manchester United legend Gary Neville's relationship with Premier League club Nottingham Forest has been tense since the end of last season
Gary Neville pictured at Nottingham Forest's City Ground
Gary Neville pictured at Nottingham Forest's City Ground(Image: Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
Manchester United legend Gary Neville has responded after Nottingham Forest sacked Nuno Espirito Santo.
Last season, Neville and Forest butted heads several times due to the former's criticism of the club's owner Evangelos Marinakis. The tension began after the former United captain disagreed with the club's decision to openly criticise the officials after a perceived refereeing error against Everton.
Neville has previously accused Marinakis of running Forest like a 'mafia gang' which Sky later apologised for. However, the situation came to a head after Forest's draw to local rivals Leicester City.
Marinakis was seen conducting a heated conversation with Espirito Santo on the pitch after the owner stormed onto the field. Neville described this as 'scandalous' and insisted the former Wolves and Tottenham Hotspur manager should 'negotiate his exit'.
Forest claimed that the insinuation that the Greek owner burst onto the field to confront his manager was false and that Marinakis actually walked onto the pitch to check on the condition of Taiwo Awoniyi, who picked up a serious injury in the fixture. Ahead of the final game of the season, Neville was appointed to cover Forest vs Chelsea at the City Ground but Sky Sports' plans had to change as the East Midlands club chose to reject his media pass request.
The United icon then took to social media to suggest he had been 'banned' which Forest refute but did admit they rejected the request to award Neville a pass. The feud between Neville and Forest is not thought to have been resolved heading into this campaign and it seems the former defender was an interested observer after Marinakis and his boardroom chose to relieve Espirito Santo of his duties at the club.
Espirito Santo recently admitted that his relationship with the Forest owner had become strained. It is believed this breakdown was caused by the appointment of Arsenal's former sporting director Edu.
Gary Neville shares the news that Nuno Espirito Santo has been sacked by Nottingham Forest
Gary Neville shares the news that Nuno Espirito Santo has been sacked by Nottingham Forest
Following the announcement, Neville simply shared the news to his Instagram story, declining to pass comment. It remains to be seen if the pundit will pass any further comment on the situation this week as the Premier League returns.
Marinakis has wasted little time replacing Santo. Forest have already confirmed the appointment of Ange Postecoglou as their next manager.
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