Nottingham Forest are in line to appoint Vitor Pereira as their fourth head coach of the season
11:45, 13 Feb 2026
Morato has his head in his hands as the Nottingham Forest defender and his teammates react after drawing with Wolverhampton Wanderers
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Morato has his head in his hands as the Nottingham Forest defender and his teammates react after drawing with Wolverhampton Wanderers(Image: Getty)
Nottingham Forest will need their new head coach to hit the ground running as they battle for Premier League survival.
Four managers in one season is not exactly a recipe for success at any club, but it is the situation the Reds find themselves in. Nuno Espirito Santo, Ange Postecoglou and Sean Dyche have all been and gone, and now Vitor Pereira is in line to pick up the reins.
The Portuguese is expected to be appointed as Dyche’s replacement after owner Evangelos Marinakis wielded the axe on the back of Wednesday night’s 0-0 draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers. If all goes to plan, his first game in charge will be away to Fenerbahce in the Europa League play-offs next Thursday.
Securing Premier League survival will be the absolute priority for the new man, however. He has experience on that front, having guided Wolves to safety last season.
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Forest currently hold a three-point advantage over 18th-placed West Ham United. But with the Hammers having found form of late, the fear around the City Ground will be of Nuno Espirito Santo getting one over his former club by masterminding their rivals’ survival.
That is where Pereira comes in; he will be tasked with making sure that does not happen. He has 12 games left to get the Reds over the line.
So, how many points might he need to rack up to prove Marinakis rolling the dice again was the right call? Below, we take a look at what might be required.
How things stand?
Wolves and Burnley are all-but down, so the race is on to steer clear of the third relegation spot. Forest, in 17th, have 27 points from 26 games and West Ham have 24.
Of the teams above, Tottenham Hotspur - themselves on the lookout for a new manager - lead the Reds by two points (on 29). Leeds United are a point further ahead on 30.
Dyche’s tenure ended with Forest on a run of two wins in their last six league games. Their midweek stalemate made it two points from their last three - a disappointing return given those fixtures were against Crystal Palace, Leeds and Wolves.
At one stage, it looked as though West Ham were near-enough doomed but they have given themselves a lifeline. They have picked up 10 points from their last five fixtures.
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How many points might be needed?
The 40-point benchmark has often been cited as the one to reach in order to guarantee survival. In fact, not since the 2010/11 campaign has that total been required to stay up.
In the past nine seasons, achieving 36 points has been sufficient to secure safety. The consensus seems to be a fairly high tally might be required this season.
According to stats experts Opta, 36 points will not be enough. Their predicted table has West Ham going down, with an expected points tally of 36.13.
Cause for optimism for Forest, then. They are predicted to finish 17th, with 40.41 expected points.
Opta rate the Reds’ chances of relegation at 21 per cent. For the Hammers, that figure is 70.54 per cent. Spurs’ chances are put at 3.4 per cent and Leeds’ at 4.10 per cent.
The road ahead
Forest have a tough run of fixtures coming up. They would have been hoping to go into them with a bit more breathing space.
If 40 points is the goal, the Reds need 13 from their remaining fixtures. Four wins and a draw could be enough or three wins and four draws.
Forest’s remaining league fixtures
Liverpool (H)
Brighton and Hove Albion (A)
Manchester City (A)
Fulham (H)
Tottenham Hotspur (A)
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Aston Villa (H)
Burnley (H)
Sunderland (A)
Chelsea (A)
Newcastle United (H)
Manchester United (A)
Bournemouth (H)
West Ham’s remaining league fixtures
Bournemouth (H)
Liverpool (A)
Fulham (A)
Manchester City (H)
Aston Villa (A)
Wolverhampton Wanderers (H)
Crystal Palace (A)
Everton (H)
Brentford (A)
Arsenal (H)
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Newcastle United (A)
Leeds United (H)
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