West Ham United have just been handed a boost in their reported pursuit of former Nottingham Forest boss Nuno Espírito Santo, as pressure also grows on under-fire Hammers boss Graham Potter.
Potter has made one of the worst starts to a new season by any Hammers boss in Premier League history, and only Avram Grant's relegated Hammers team from the 2010/2011 season conceded more goals at this stage of the campaign.
Grant's dismal West Ham are also the only Irons side to record a lower win percentage in the competition than Potter's men — which makes for incredibly worrying reading.
Worst West Ham managers in the Premier League Win percentage
9. Sam Allardyce 30.7%
10. Julen Lopetegui 30%
11. Gianfranco Zola 27.8%
12, Graham Potter 27.3%
13. Avram Grant 18.9%
via StatMuse
After the east Londoners lost all three of their opening matches in all competitions, the pressure was already on Potter, but an excellent 3-0 win over Nuno's Forest at the City Ground actually restored some degree of faith that things could turn a corner.
That turned out to be Nuno's final game in charge of Forest, despite guiding them back to Europe for the first time since 1995 last term, owing to a public fallout with controversial owner Evangelos Marinakis which ultimately cost the Portuguese his job.
Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo looks dejected after the match
Since then, West Ham have swiftly been brought right back down to Earth after the international break following a 3-0 slump at home to Tottenham in the London derby last Saturday, and Nuno could now replace Potter.
Reports suggest that West Ham chair David Sullivan is a fan of Nuno (Alan Nixon), and the fact he is readily available makes the prospect of his potential appointment a fairly doable one if they do decide to sack Potter.
Nuno Espírito Santo stance on next job as West Ham eye move
A lot will depend on Nuno's wishes and his stance on joining West Ham, with journalist Neil Goulding sharing a significant boost for Sullivan in this regard.
Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo before the match
According to Goulding, Nuno's "priority" is to remain in the Premier League after leaving Forest, and he's extremely keen to jump right back into management — which will suit West Ham down to the ground.
He's apparently hungry for his next role as soon as possible, so West Ham may need to make a decision on Potter's future fairly quickly.
West Ham should consider Nuno to replace Potter
West Ham's next three league games against Crystal Palace, Everton and Arsenal will likely go a long way in determining Potter's long-term future, but if they elect to part company, Nuno is arguably their best replacement choice.
José Mourinho is also a free agent, though his last job in England was a lacklustre spell at Tottenham, while Nuno made history by seriously overachieving at Forest last term on limited resources.
Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo-2
This arguably makes him a standout candidate, and Nuno is known for promoting defensive discipline in his setup — something which West Ham have lacked for a very long time.
He also significantly improved Forest's set-piece weaknesses, which were a major achilles heel for them prior to his arrival, not to mention an aspect of play that West Ham have seriously struggled with under Potter.
Perhaps Nuno could be a David Moyes 2.0, with the potential to bring back serious solidarity to an otherwise very fragile side.